Understudied Understudies
by luigi-is-stellar
Summary: Mario's good deed for his little brother goes horribly wrong...will Luigi forgive him? Has Luigi dealt with living in the shadow of Mario for one time too many? If you're a Luigi fan, this one's for you though there's something in here for everyone.
1. Luigi gets dissed

_Salutations! Wow, my first crack into the Super Mario fanfic world. Waves nervously__  
This one is for all the Luigi fans out there, and anyone who finds the Mario Bros just plain cute! I love me some Mr. Lean and Green though all my favorite characters get their glory days in this one.  
Inspired by Super Smash Bros, of course, one of the greatest games ever!  
R&R if you like what you read. ;-)  
Anyway, less yammer, more grammar..._

**Understudied Understudies  
**

"Luigi, LUIGI! Come quick!" Absolute silence. Mario popped his head up over the side of the couch, scanning the darkened room for any sign of his sleepy brother. He knew he'd be asleep by now, but there was no way he was going to let this moment slide after his long hours of search engines and character game play. The new N 64 game, Super Smash Bros, had proven to be another let down for Luigi- figuring he'd been left out of another game after the low blow he received from Mario 64, he'd retired to bed early, tired of playing a game as a fluffy pink mouth or a fox wearing pants. He wanted to play as himself, dammit. 'You look awesome, Mario' the little brother commented with a tired, weak smile, and it nearly broke Mario's heart to watch him retreat to bed early, still managing to be proud of his older brothers success and newest starring entry into the 3D gaming system. Mario hated it. Why couldn't Luigi just be furiously envious of his success, or hate him- anything but admire him, and give him endless support to his continuous worship? It would hurt a lot less than have to see him left in the dust again, as usual, regardless of the fact that he was so awesomely skilled. Whenever Mario himself was outsmarted, not Peach, not DK, not anyone but Luigi even tried to come to his rescue. Not successfully, anyway. It was always Luigi who came to save his arse, when all hope was gone, and not once did he try to reap the benefits of being in the spotlight for once. Of course, Nintendo would take his ridiculous amount of adventures and twist them into one single solitary game- it wasn't only the one time that Mario had been kidnaped by the likes of Bowser. (Do you really think Bowser would have given up after the ONE time?) He wasn't perfect, and when he proved not to be, it was Luigi who proved he was closer to it. The one game was shameful compared to the truth- and, lets face it, it was educational on top of it. Race around and find stolen or missing objects? Isn't that what pool janitors did after a party at the public pool? If that's all Luigi ever had to do, Mario would have been an idiot for having been captured in the first place! Neither of them had even bothered to finish playing Mario is Missing- they never stayed awake long enough whenever they put it on. Mario had kindly asked that Luigi be included in this game- he should have known nobody would comply. Luigi had a big fan base, regardless of who wanted to admit it or not. But they didn't want to 'risk' taking a chance on him. Mario spent months trying to find Luigi in Mario 64- there were so many rumors that he was, of course none of them would be true. Regardless, he'd still fallen for the same old rumors all over again, hearing that Luigi was an unlock-able character in this newest addition. After many struggles through game play (he never wanted to play break the target EVER again) all this hard work had payed off. Here was Luigi, looking awesomely cool in 3D, and all he had to do was beat him to have him as a playable character. He was so happy, he nearly wet his plumber pjs. But where was Luigi? He was screaming out to him! Man, could he sleep like a Tanooki statue. He couldn't take the suspense. PAUSE. He raced into the green hued room, where his lump of a brother lay snoozing. He whipped the lump with a now de-gloved hand.  
"GET UP and come out here, I said! I have something important to show you!"  
"Unnngh... if you want me to watch spaghetti noodles go from hard to soft & wiggly in the pot again, Mario, I swear to God..."  
"PLEASE, this time it's big!"  
"Alright. ALRIGHT! I'm up..." Groggily, Mario's baby brother followed him out into the living room, where the N64 was set up and on pause. On screen, he saw Mario- he must have discovered a new, awesome move... but wait. Was that another Mario in an alternate suit? No, he never got a green color scheme... they never designed him that skinny- green fireballs? And was that an L on his hat? Luigi rubbed his eyes hard and looked at his brother, who was grinning like an idiot. Still a little incoherent from sleep, Luigi stammered  
"Mario... what did you do?!"  
"No, what did your FANS do- they found out how to unlock you as a playable character!"  
"What?! That-that's me- in 3D?- wait, but- how did they DO that?!"  
"Not easily. You had to beat the game with five lives to unlock captain falcon or jigglypuff- and beat break the target with all 6 players plus one of the unlocked players to get you."  
"They did all that work for me?" Luigi blushed, settling down on the couch and watching the screen with a glint of excitement.  
"Well I TOLD you that, dufus. People love you squeegee!" Mario pealed the childhood nickname giddily, & Luigi's blush grew all the more crimson.  
"Yeah, well- come on, play! I wanna see what I can do." He laughed anxiously, and Mario proceeded to battle his 3D brother on screen.  
"You're kicking my ass!" He barked as he was AGAIN uppercut into the sky.  
"Um, why don't you drill kick me on your way down?"  
Finally, as the battle winded down and 3D Luigi was damaged adequately, Mario sent him flying off the ledge, and the game was set. Both brothers cheered triumphantly, and Mario was feeling quite smug. It had been too long since the last time he was able to cheer his brother up like this- and THAT was years ago, when he found out he'd be starring in his own game. Too bad that turned out to be a true dud...  
"Lets see what they say about you." Mario chuckled excitedly, knowing that each unlock-able character had a cool line saying something about them when you succeeded in unlocking them. Sure enough, some words popped up. But they turned horribly against his good deed for his brother. From the TV screen, the game's text bellowed the words "the ETERNAL UNDERSTUDY" like an ugly black rat in a pizza shop. He felt a sickening feeling in his gut as he turned to Luigi, the faster reader of the two, who was sinking back against the plush couch pillows. The embarrassment and hurt etched all over his face said enough. It wasn't fair. Mario made so much money for this stupid company. Why did they always do such terrible things to his own flesh and blood? He felt his head grow hot with anger.  
"Those pathetic, mean sons of-"  
"Bro, don't." Luigi sighed, pale with eyes downcast. "It makes no difference anyway."  
Mario was furious. He was disgruntled and he didn't want to hear another dismissal.  
"No! No, Luigi- this is so stupid! I'm so sick and tired of this happening all the time!"  
"Mario...please." Luigi mumbled, eyes still fixated on the floor. "It doesn't matter if you are or not. It is what it is." Luigi said curtly, and he stood with abrupt force, heading back towards his bedroom.  
"Luigi, _please_, you don't- NOBODY actually thinks-" but the door slammed, and a deep, ringing silence filled the house. What had been an effort of extreme joy and success, had now dwindled into disappointment for his younger brother... yet again. God, and it had been so long since he had seen him that pleased. No, Mario was beyond furious. He wanted to break something & wondered if there were any rude, obnoxious turtles to whomp. They always had something out of line to yell at people... it's not like they wouldn't be ASKING for it- and then he thought of his poor baby brother, curled up miserably in his emerald green sheets, perhaps weeping. Always standing in the shadow of his older brothers supposed greatness. From birth, the green guy who followed Mario around. He never once tried to get in the way of Mario's never declining success. As children, Luigi stood in the background and let people admire and take awe over him and his amazing jumping skills, cheering him on even. When the antics went awry and he ended up with battered knees or loose teeth, it was Luigi racing to the forefront to bandage up and soothe the whimpering show off. It got Mario pondering, as he wandered into the kitchen, searching for a late night snack. He found it in some cupcakes that Peach had brought over earlier that day. Sitting down at the table, trying to make each cupcake last as long as possible, Mario put things into perspective. Who really was the bigger brother, anyway? What other person could handle being dealt the b-sides and backgrounds all the time the way Luigi did? Mario knew _he_ wouldn't ever have been able to... because he really wasn't as strong in that way as Luigi was. Where confidence and hyperactivity dwelled within himself, calm, collected intelligence and thoughtful will power dwelled within Luigi. And again the thought drifted to his brother, alone in his room yet again, made to feel like he was inferior. No, foul mouthed turtles didn't need him right now. It was a rare moment in time for Mario to try to give back to Luigi, when he was sure he wouldn't be told that everything was 'fine'. Things were always fine with Luigi, until he was caught in his bluff, wiping red eyes and stammering in his bedroom. Mario felt a twist of sorrow in his chest. His poor baby brother. He was dying to go in and cheer him up _some_how, but he knew his timing was essential. Going in too early could be risky. Luigi was in angry mode now. It would take at least... 4 slowly eaten cupcakes- VERY slowly eaten cupcakes- for Luigi to pass into sulking. Impatiently, Mario ate two and wolfed the last two down, as if it would make time go faster.  
"Oh, forget timing." Mario muttered to himself. "I can handle Luigi. Not like I've never dodged green fireballs before..." Trying to be as quiet as he could possibly manage, Mario crept along the hall towards Luigi's room once more. So, so quiet in there. It was always too quiet near that room. It was like he felt it was his duty, being unnoticeable.  
"Luigi? Can I come in?"  
Silence.  
"Luigi, please don't do this."  
A slight creak, then a quick return to silence.  
"Oooh I HATE the silent treatment! Please don't ignore me, come on..." He heard only the slight rustle of the bed sheets as he turned over, the only symbol of existence within the walls of the room. No answer.  
"Fine, then you asked for it. I'm coming in there! You better not throw anything..." Mario joked- he still refused to let go of the fact that Luigi's first childhood pass time was flinging things in Mario's general direction. Though it quite often smarted, the few times Mario did hit it brought the curious baby immense joy. It took the family about a month to realize it was the wordless baby's desperate means to attract Mario's attention, and get him to come over. Being a child himself, Mario hadn't been too impressed at the time. He was amusing himself so much on reminiscence that he failed to realize that he'd just walked into a pitch black room. Hitting his leg against the bed post, Mario yelped. Coming back into the here and now, a jolt of fear at the blackness overtook him and he scrambled onto the bed and under the sheets.  
"Freezing in here, huh?" He offered pathetically, to the unmoving lump of life that he called a grumpy brother. "Luigi? Stop it." His heart was starting to pound now. Where was that night table lamp?! "Luigi, are you trying to make a point? You're making it to the wrong person because I don't believe you're invaluable or invisible at all and in fact if you don't start TALKING TO ME I'm going to assume that this thing breathing beside me isn't even YOU but a-" CLICK! Finally, that lamp! "Oh, thank God! But anyway...UM!"  
"Shhhh!" Yoshi hissed, buried snugly into Luigi's sheets. Mario was so uncomfortable, he nearly turned as red as his pyjamas.  
"So, uhm- do you, uh... I guess you stay in Luigi's bed often? Or..."  
"NO!!!" Yoshi hollered, throwing himself out of the bed. "I couldn't sleep. I hopped in to borrow the flute and I saw that Luigi wasn't around... so I assumed you weren't around. And I waited...and...I actually got sleepy. And I was scared that if I ran home I wouldn't be sleepy anymore, so I just... this sounds like a big excuse, doesn't it."  
"What's that you're stepping on?" Mario demanded, looking at the dinosaurs feet. A crumpled sheet of paper was being mangled. He grabbed it out from under Yoshi's feet. He saw the scrawled handwriting of his younger brother and felt very uneasy.  
"Let me see too!" Yoshi barked, grabbing for them.  
"Wait!" Mario muttered, leaning away from the dinosaur. He felt as though this was personal, and he had to read it first.

_Mario, please don't get angry._

This was **not** a good start.

_I figured that if anyone could understand this, it would be you. I'm so sorry, but it just hurts too much to be nothing but the shadow of another person anymore. I don't even know who I am, let alone anybody else. I need to be on my own for a while... I'm sorry, but if things work out this way, I may not come back. And if that's the case, I love you very much, be careful and know that this isn't your fault. I guess it's everyone elses. Please don't be too hard on yourself... don't forget to pick fresh fruit for Yoshi, and just keep the washer on cold cycle. Call Peach if you get in trouble._

_Take Care,  
__Luigi_

Mario read it over four times before his eyes finally sank from the page to the floorboards.  
His mind was flickering with an intense mesh of confusion and panic.Why. Why why why why WHY?They were a pair, they were a force- tag team, DOUBLE ACT! And who would he go to NOW when he got scared of the dark?! NOBODY knew about that, and he was too ashamed to tell anyone else! Surely Luigi had forgotten... and he was out there now, angry, upset, and certain that the world was laughing at him. The irony was overhwhelming. Mario was the one person who truly appreciated Luigi, and he was the first to get left in the dust.  
He couldn't comprehend it. Gone? Waking up in the morning and NOT having to go wake his baby brother? Walking and not having Luigi there with him to talk to? He swallowed harshly. Not having Luigi around ever again?  
Not ever again.  
The thought was like a doom filled, ringing tower bell toll, or a slow, droning siren.  
And the most excruciating, painful hurt began to drag him down into realization, swallowing him whole.  
Not ever again.

---

Luigi kept looking around himself, behind and ahead, for a person who wasn't there. He couldn't hear jumping, or laughing, or anything Mario anywhere. And it was like not seeing your own shadow, or having no reflection in the mirror. He hated to, but he had to admit it. Him and Mario really were inseparable. Maybe Mario and Peach might actually have sensible dates if he stopped including Luigi in all of them- as awkward and embarrassing as that was. It had always been him and Mario. Luigi, inventing stories to help Mario get to sleep in the bunk above him when he used to get scared to go to bed. Mario, taking out the koopa bullies in the school yard who teased Luigi for his ONE enormous curl. Luigi, calling the ambulance whenever Mario wasn't so smooth practicing jumps at the playground... It was definitely his guilt. Mario wouldn't have a clue what to do without him. The only time Mario ever seemed to be without Luigi was when he was in bed, or in the bathroom. And due to some unfortunate events, even that wasn't the case sometimes. If Luigi went anywhere for too long, Mario got uneasy. How many times did Luigi take extra long bubble baths only to have the door randomly beaten in, with Mario thinking he'd drowned in the tub? ("You knocking and me responding also confirms my ability to breathe, you know.") Mario was so quick to panic for his little brothers safety. Sort of the way Luigi was feeling now. Poor Mario. Who knows how he'd react when he found Luigi missing...

—

"Mario, don't cry, I'm sure he'll come home!" Yoshi comforted, but honestly didn't know what to think. He knew as well as Mario did that if Luigi was gone, and Mario wasn't gone as well, something was terribly wrong. "Maybe he got hungry for-"  
"It's in the fridge! I always make too much, you KNOW there's always too much to eat here and there's-"  
"OK! Ok, so no snack... what did he say in the letter?" Yoshi craned his neck to see."Is it really that bad?" He looked with blatant surprise at the sniveling wreck.  
"He said he was going to go out and try to be alone, by himself, without me. And if he liked it, he might STAY alone! Why would he do that to me?"  
"Um... I'm not sure if he was really doing anything TO you, Mario. I mean... don't you think it would be kind of, um- with you being so, so super famous, and him being...not so famous... hard to- I don't know, be alive?" Mario stopped crying for a moment, looking up at the green dinosaur in horror.  
"Are you... you're suggesting that Luigi... that this is a suicide note?!" He sobbed, curling into a living pile of tears.  
"Oh gracious- no, no, that's not what I- Mario, Luigi isn't going to kill himself. He just wants to try being by himself a while, I guess. Uh, here..." Yoshi scrambled for a tissue, handing it to Mario, who had now decently composed himself. "I'm sure he's just upset. He'll come back! He's never done ANYTHING without you. I'm surprised he even managed to do this in the first place, without running it by you first." Yoshi chuckled, but his humor quickly died with a glare from the plumber. Yoshi was in disbelief. Was this for real? Had he ever seen ANYONE- let alone Mario, fighter of all things bad, guts of steel and will of iron- react to anything this way?  
"I've got to go find him. Yoshi, will you help me?" Mario stood, turning to the green dinosaur urgently. Yoshi hesitated, and Mario raised his brows in disbelief.  
"You aren't going to help me?! Yoshi, Luigi is out there somewhere, ALONE, who KNOWS what could happen to him-"  
"Uh, Mario... Luigi is kind of grown up. And... he's also a Mario brother. I think he can take care of himself." He said tentatively, scared of Mario's reaction. The plumber stood staring at Yoshi for a moment, then deflated with a sigh.  
"You're right, you know. I'm just so used to looking after him, he's still my baby brother in my eyes, you know?" He sat next to Yoshi again, dismal. "I guess the only thing I can really do is wait, huh." Mario sighed, chin in his hands. Yoshi patted his back, feeling very sorry for him.  
"Well, the main thing is... try not to have a panic attack like you did a few moments ago, ok? I'm sure he'll come back! I bet he's in just as much of a mess as you are..."

---

'Should've packed some food... should've thought this out better!' Luigi thought to himself, his stomach snarling. 'Well, not very many options. Leave with nothing without Mario knowing, leave with something with Mario knowing...'  
"Wouldn't have gotten anywhere that way." He muttered aloud, hiking his back pack further up his shoulders. He managed to pack a couple of snacks, some mushrooms, a fire flower, some clothes, and a few books. Other than that, he may as well have nothing. Suddenly, he became very alert. He heard a stomping sound, frantic, growing like some outlandish weed. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, and he listened hard. It was definitely coming his way. He could've sworn he heard someone or something running at him. Tensing every muscle in his body, he prepared himself for the impact that was sure to come, it was too close for him to move now, and all he could do was wait for it, and hope for the best...

----

_Wipes brow Whew! Well, that's my first chapter to this story.  
Did you love it? Did you hate it?!  
Did the cupcakes make you hungry? Because it worked on me.  
Go easy on little 'ol me, ahm just a newbie after awl!  
I put this out there to see if there was any love for me in the Mario fandom world  
Please R&R, this is my very first try at Mario fics & I'd love to know if this strikes anyone's interest- I have plenty more saved here where this came from ;)_

-Mishy


	2. Luigi's deed, Wario's concerns

_Hey everyone, nice to see some people are enjoying so I'll put the second chapter out there ;) Thanks for the heads up guys, I realized afterwards I didn't have my dialogue spaced, I apologize LOL that's been corrected. Hope you all like this installment.  
R&R all, enjoy!_  
-----

**Understudied Understudies**

"Whaaaaaaa!" He howled, barreling forward as someone collided with him. He was smacked on top of the head and he rolled over quickly, gripping his attacker and pinning them to the ground. It was a toadlette, looking very dumbfounded.

"HEY! You're not Waluigi!" The youngster barked, squirming out of Luigi's grip. The Mario brother looked very dull.

"Nope."

"Well then who are you, his brother?"

"Probably." Luigi shrugged nonchalantly, starting to walk away. The small toadlette followed at his heels.

"Whadda ya mean, probably? Wouldn't you know? I mean, I know who my brothers and sisters are, and if you don't, that's sort of-"

"Listen, kid. Are you looking for Waluigi?"

"Yeah, he-"

"Well I'm not him. If I was, I'm sure you'd know it. Good day."

Luigi tried to abruptly end the conversation, and started into a run to lose the kid. He felt bad, but he really just craved to be alone. He executed a few large jumps, heading from a path along the mushroom kingdom into a forest, certain he'd shake the child off of his trail. Taking a break under the shelter of a very large tree, he closed his eyes for a moment and pictured Mario's lasagna until he was sure he could smell it.  
Oh, the delicious, tender beef, the rich tangy tomato sauce, delectable cheese...

"HOLY COW MISTER!!! Do you have springs for legs?!" Dread filled Luigi when he heard the gasping kid, frightfully close to him.

"No, I'm a-" He avoided the name Mario at all costs. DON'T say Mario... "Uh... I work out."

"Really..." The kid looked very skeptical. He was so positive of who this was, but he didn't want to risk saying it. What if it was just a look-alike? Besides, since when did Luigi travel places without Mario? Perhaps this green clad stranger would tell him.

"You look familiar."

"I know where Waluigi is, you know." Luigi interjected quickly. The child perked up.

"WHERE is he?! He's got my baby sister!" The kid growled, and Luigi sincerely felt for the child then. No wonder he was being such a stubborn nuisance. Luigi knew what it was like to have a sibling missing...

"I'll tell you what." Luigi began, crouching to the kids level. "I'm sort of alright at catching baddies. And Waluigi, well... in my opinion, he's no hassle." Luigi chuckled.

"I'll get your baby sister back no problem."Luigi stood, dusting off his plumber pants and held out his hand.

"No need for you getting tuckered out again. Just hang on ok?" Luigi grabbed the kid up and proceeded to bounce across the forest, heading for Wario's woods. He knew he'd find Waluigi there, probably tormenting the poor kid with his awful jokes and company. Wario came running out of his house, surprised to see the young plumber visiting.

"Luigi?" He called, and the Mario brother landed in front of him.

"Wow, someone who knows me by name." Luigi rolled his eyes, placing the toadlette safely on the ground. Having confirmed his identity, the youngster was now stunned. WOW. A real live Mario brother! Wario looked baffled.

"What do you mean? Hey, where's M-" Luigi slapped a hand over Wario's mouth VERY quickly.

"No time for that- do you know where Waluigi is?" Wario again looked super surprised at Mario's little brother.

"Uhm, he's down in the basement, probably playing with the electric trains... Luigi, are you ok?"

"Never better. He's got this poor kids little sister." Luigi stated, and Wario groaned with an eyeroll.

"What a loser! I told him to stop taking people captive. He gets a kick out of the worry it brings peoples families. Well you can't get gold coins out of worry. Hold on, I'll go set him straight-"

"No that's fine, I can handle him." Luigi chortled, rolling up his sleeves. Wario adapted a wide eyed look.

"Uhm, well, ok Luigi, just- please don't beat him up too bad. He may be a twit but he's still my little brother."

Luigi nodded, trying to hold back a want to fake urge. 'He's still my little brother' Luigi mocked in his head, going down the stairs. 'No wonder Waluigi is such a jerk. Probably ticked off at being second best to Wario. That's even worse than ME!'  
Meanwhile, Wario looked uncomfortably down at the toadlette.

"Hey, sorry about your sister. My brother is-"

"A BIG DUMBO! He took my Swirlie ice cream, too!"

"Yeah, sorry... he'll do that. So how did you find Luigi?"

"Luigi? As in Luigi Mario? As in Mario's brother Luigi?"

"Yeah, that'd be him."

"I KNEW it! I KNEW he was a Mario brother! I could tell by the way he jumped!" The toadlette beamed, excited by running into one of the famous Mario brothers.

"So what, is Mario sick or something? Did you go to Mario's house & he was at Peach's or what?" Wario scratched his head, and the child looked confused.

"Uhhm... no, I ran into Luigi near the forest of Illusion, actually."

"WHAT?! But that's so far from Mario's house! What was he doing all the way out there alone I wonder?"

"What's the big deal? Doesn't he fight just the same as Mario? Luigi can too, you know. I saw him do it in the video games!"

This comment made Wario turn a little scarlet. He hadn't meant to be rude, and try to belittle Luigi in any way. It was just SO strange, seeing him alone...

"I'm back." Luigi declared, placing the tiny toadlette down in front of her brother. She tackled her older brother on impact. Like brother like sister. "Do you guys need a lift home?" He asked, as they separated from an exuberant embrace. He was trying to ignore Wario, who was looking at him with a sense of urgency. He was evidently curious about a lone Luigi.

"Um, you don't have to, if you're busy..." The brother toadlette commented, feeling bad for chasing down LUIGI of all people... him and his brother weren't usually free in their time schedules...

"If he wants to walk, he can, but I'd love one!" The tiny girl toadlette piped up enthusiastically, blushing profusely. Her brother rolled his eyes. Girls.

"Well, hop on my back you two, I'll have you home in no time. See you Wario! Where was it you live?" Luigi asked, hopping off into the air quickly, relieved that he didn't have to answer any of Wario's questions. Concerned, Wario slowly walked back into his house. Something was definitely wrong here. Hoping he was just being paranoid, he decided it might be a good idea to give Mario a call, and see if everything was up to scratch.

Meanwhile, Luigi sat the children down on their front lawn, then stretched long and hard.

"Well, that's that then, kids. That'll teach you to play near the forest of illusion! Be careful, ok? Next time you mightn't be so lucky as to be kidnaped by such a dork like Waluigi... you never know if Bowser or one of his cronies might be near by."

"Sorry..." The little girl toadlette said shyly, frowning at the ground. Luigi laughed, patting her on the head.

"Don't be sorry, just be careful! I wouldn't want to come back and find you'd gotten hurt!" She squealed with joy, grabbing one of Luigi's long legs in her arms and squeezing tightly.

"Oh Luigi, you're the BEST! You're my hero!!!" She cried, giggling madly. Luigi rubbed the back of his neck, and it was his turn to blush. He'd never been called a hero before...

"Yeah Luigi, you're awesome! Um... would you mind- you know if it's not to much trouble, I-don't-want-to-bug-you-but-I-was-wondering-if-I-could-have-your-autograph!" The boy toadlette rushed, looking up at Luigi hopefully.

"Um, sure, why not?" Luigi laughed. How foreign was this?

"WAIT HERE!" The boy barked, taking off into the house.

"Horatio, BRING MINE TOO!!" The little girl screamed, still clinging to Luigi's leg. Moments later, the toadlette boy came running out, unrolling two Luigi posters. They were superbly cool! Luigi hadn't even seen them before! He never even knew these posters existed! They had pictures of him from the original Mario game right up into his newest appearance in super smash bros! Luigi signed them happily, and it sent the kids into a frenzy of happiness.

"I'm really glad they put you in the game, Luigi. You're my favorite!" The little girl blushed, and it filled Luigi with a sense of value. Wow. At least he mattered to someone!

"Wow, I can't believe I met Luigi. Thanks so much!" The little boy grinned, and both of the children waved Luigi away as he continued on his travels.

"See ya kids, take care!" He smiled, and wandered off into the distance, following the path he had been walking on originally. Where he was, he wasn't quite sure. But he knew one thing, he was feeling pretty damn good about himself right now!

—

As Mario's phone began to ring, him and Yoshi stared at each other for a moment before rushing off into the living room.

"Maybe it's him, maybe he wants me to come pick him up!" Mario hypothesized. "Maybe you should go start my kart! He's probably starving, can't cook for-"

"Mario, PICK IT UP! Or he's going to hang up!"

"LUIGI don't hang up!!!" Mario yapped into the phone, CERTAIN it was his little brother. Of course, it was Wario, as we discovered earlier, and he was now smiling sympathetically on the other end

"Oh, I knew it."

"Whoa. NOT Luigi." Mario sputtered, embarrassed, and Yoshi sighed loudly, crumpling onto the couch. Now Yoshi was worrying. Why did Luigi leave like that, after all this time? No, he couldn't think about it. For the sake of Mario's sanity, he wouldn't start wondering that sort of thing too. Luigi was temporarily MIA. But he was coming back._ 'He probably is right now'_ Yoshi thought, wishing he believed it wholly.

"What do you mean, you knew it? What's up, Wario?"

"Well, I just saw Luigi... he came by with this kid he was helping out. I didn't see you there with him so I figured something was up."

"You SAW Luigi?" Mario piped up anxiously. "Do you know where he was headed?"

"Um, apparently he's up around the trail leading by the forest of illusion. What's going on, Mario? Did something bad happen?"

"Yeah... yeah something really bad happened." Mario frowned, reliving the incident. "We were playing super smash bros- he was in it, but they said something really terrible about him."

"What could be so bad that he'd leave home over it?"

"They called him an 'eternal understudy.'"

"Oh... ouch. That would do it!"

"Yeah, so I'm going to try to find him... you say he was with a kid?"

"Yeah, a little toad... I figured I'd call to see if anything was up."

"WHAT'D THEY CALL HIM!" Waluigi barked in the background. "That little green jerk gave me a black eye!"

"I'll tell you after!"

"I want to know NOW!" Waluigi whined, and Mario could hear a tussle.

"Listen here Wally, I'm trying to talk on the phone!"

"Don't call me that, he might hear!"

"Anyway Mario, sorry about that, for whatever reason Waluigi is disgustingly interested in all things Luigi after earlier-"

"I AM NOT! He just said some weird things!"

"-and I wish you best of luck on tracking him down... he's pretty quick! So you'd best hurry on if you're going... anyone going around a place like the forest of illusion must be asking for it. And if you want any help, give me a ring. Me & Waluigi aren't busy."

"Speak for yourself!"

"Do I have to blacken your other one?! Anyway, sorry Mario- give a shout if you need help."

"Thanks for calling Wario, I really appreciate it."

"No problem. See you Mario!"

"Bye Wario." Mario hung up the phone, and jumped to a stand with frightful force. "Yoshi, are you going to help or what?"

The dinosaur hopped to his feet next to his friend, happy to help. He'd never be able to stay home, knowing Luigi was roaming dangerous places such as the forest of illusion. After all, he owed it to Luigi to keep him safe...

"You know it. Hop on, Mario."

With that, the two set off at a lightening speed pace, Yoshi was racing against the clock as it had now faded into darkness in the mushroom kingdom. His knowledge of Luigi's incredible jumping abilities was making him feel doubtful about catching up to him, but he didn't want to stop believing they could. He hoped they weren't too late to catch up to him, too late to help him in case he'd run into a darker creature in the mushroom kingdom...

—

The music that typically kept him upbeat was really starting to get on his nerves- and he really didn't have many to spare.

"Oh for the love of _all things Italian_, does _anyone_ get tired of playing this song?!"

And it blared on loudly. (Dadadada da da-da da da-da da, dadadada-da DA-DA-DA!)

"I will WHOMP whoever's behind this...I _will _break your keyboard."

Silence.

He really couldn't help it, he was starting to get grumpy. He was starving. Not only that, but he was lonely. Being away from home was really starting to get to him. The frequent check ups from Mario to see if he was bored, playing games with a brother that never ran out of energy, racing him in their karts all over the mushroom kingdom... Luigi felt his eyes prick with tears. What was he going to put his poor brother through? Where would Mario go if he got frightened in the night? He always had awful dreams, and because of that the two of them always camped out in the living room together, laughing and carrying on until they couldn't keep their eyes open. He wondered if Mario was as lonely as he was right then. He would give _anything_ to have some sort of company, from anyone...

"Well, I knew I heard _some_one screaming like a maniac..."

A coy voice. And it made Luigi's heart pound when he thought he recognized it. Could he take that back? ALMOST anyone, but please, anyone but this ONE person... who knows, maybe it was just someone with a similar voice? Swallowing hard, he prepared himself to meet a sly gaze. And when he finally did, he was sure his heart was going to pound its way out of him. He couldn't be wrong. But he thought they'd left so long ago? As his mind reeled in the recollection, the memories, the pain of the thoughts that a voice like that once caused...the hurt that the person brought him...

---

_That's it for chapter two, and now the REAL fun begins :)  
Hope everyone is enjoying this, don't forget to R&R! All constructive criticism is appreciated  
(Otherwise this would have been 10x harder to read :P )  
Thanks everyone, I really appreciate hearing that you're entertained, & I'm working on chapter 3._


	3. Brotherly Bantering, background history

_This is my longest chapter yet- I hope everyone enjoys!  
Thanks again for the great reviews :)  
R&R, happy reading! _

_---_

**Understudied Understudies **

"Well what are they saying about that geek now?" Waluigi demanded, nursing his injured eye with an ice pack. Wario looked at him angrily.

"Wally, do you have any consideration for anyone else? Don't you realize that Luigi is in trouble?"

"So was I, but you never bothered to come down and help me." Waluigi whined, in reference to the event from earlier.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't go taking little kids like that. They can get pretty scared pretty easy."

"It's boring around here! We never do anything! We just-"

"Make fun for yourself, then."

"I did." Waluigi cackled, and Wario sat down on the other side of the table from him, exasperated. Sometimes talking to his younger brother seemed hopeless. Sometimes- not _often_, but sometimes- he wished he had a baby brother like Luigi, who actually seemed to care about him, and well... anybody, and not keeping up the bad guy image for just a few seconds. Wario's silence was very, _very_ unusual, and it was starting to make Waluigi uncomfortable. What was really going on, anyway? What had gotten Luigi in such a sour mood? Though they had always been adversaries, the way the plumber had been acting made Waluigi feel- and _this_ was something new- sorry for him...

**Flashback**

As Waluigi was reaching his favorite punch-line to a well whittled joke, his basement door was thrown open.

"Alright, Waluigi. Where's the little girl."

Waluigi straightened, irritated and surprised. Luigi Mario? Here? Alone? What was going on? What was that dufus doing in his house? Ugh. If Wario let him down here, he was not impressed!

"Well well well, look who it is, Player numbero dew."

"It's deux."

"Yeah... well... that's you. And what brings your lowly self to my stellar home, L-oser?"

A long, agitated sigh from Luigi.

"Waluigi, please. I never came here to banter with you, I just came to get the kid. Her poor older brother is worried sick."

"And so must yours- not often he's not around to change your diapers! What's the matter, did he go down with a koopa stampede? Bonus for me."

Luigi's guilt for leaving Mario to deal with things by himself ignited again, and it developed into a defensive rage. He coasted forward, and to Waluigi's shock, Luigi punched him square in the face. With his good eye, he saw the meanest, most hurt expression on Luigi's face he'd ever seen. It was enough to make him actually feel bad for saying what he did. He was stunned, and in pain. Luigi _never_ reacted to his sly comments like this. He always kept his cool so well. What was wrong with him?

"If you even _think_ about wishing harm on my brother again, Waluigi... I''ll clobber you. Understand? Now give me the kid. I'm tired of your games."

"Yeah, poop head! Luigi could beat you up _so_ bad!"

"Shut up, you little twerp!"

"_You_ shut up, buttface!"

"You little-"

"Want your arm to go next?" Luigi threatened, and Waluigi gulped.

"Oww, NO! Take it! Jeez!" Waluigi scrambled to untie the little girl, shoving her towards Luigi. "Sourpuss!"

"Thanks. Bye." Luigi grumbled, walking towards the door. Waluigi stuck out his tongue loudly, and tossed an elf like shoe at Luigi's back.

"Jerk!" He sneered, angry that he'd been punched. Luigi turned back to him, looking quite defeated.

"I know I am." With that, he slipped out of the room quietly, leaving Waluigi to ponder on what had just happened...

**End flashback **

"Wario?" Waluigi said quietly, noticing how quiet his brother was being.

"What do you want, Waluigi." Wario sighed, picking at the table cloth. Waluigi felt guilty. Luigi cared so much about his brother, and all he could do was make his brother feel like garbage. Being a villain was't as easy as it seemed. It consumed you, sometimes.

"I, um... Luigi was acting really weird earlier. He got really mad when I said something bad about Mario... how is Luigi in danger?"" Surprised by Waluigi's interest, Wario perked up a bit.

"He's done something pretty rash because- well, the gaming world is being pretty mean to him again. They said something pretty awful about him, but you wouldn't understand. You'd probably laugh, knowing you." Wario rolled his eyes, standing to go grab dinner out of the over before it burnt. Waluigi felt defensive.

"You know I may be a bad guy, but I'm not a bad person."

"Could've fooled me." Wario grumbled, pulling the pasta dish from the oven. Waluigi stared at his brother in disbelief, feeling a little put out. Why did his own brother seem to hate him? What was with today being so crappy?

"Wario, tell me what they said about Luigi!" Waluigi demanded, and his older brother placed the tray on top of the oven, still not looking at his younger brother.

"They called him an 'eternal understudy', alright Waluigi? He's left home and Mario has no idea where he is. And you don''t understand what that's like, and you never will. You don't know what it's like being a big brother, and having to worry, and listen to people say awful things. And I do. And that's why it bothers me so much, because I know what it's like worrying about _you_, and taking care of _you_." The older brother blushed, plunging the knife into the pan. Waluigi flamed red, looking down at the table. He felt like a true bastard. And all this time he thought Wario was just trying to find a new way to be a hero, and therefore earn some coins...

"Jeez... thanks, bro. I mean, I wouldn't have been such an idiot if, you know..."

"I know." Wario sighed, placing the knife down and drumming his fingers on the stove, looking over at his younger brother. "It's scary, you know, when suddenly the 'rents are gone, and you're taking care of your baby brother by yourself..."

"You know I uh... I really do appreciate it- I mightn't always show it off in the best way-"

"No, I shouldn't have said what I did. I was just angry." There was a long pause between them. They hadn't talked this way in so long. They spent so much of their lives playing parts, for other people...

"I do know how Luigi feels, you know." Waluigi said finally. He'd thought it ever since he heard what they'd said about him. Like Luigi was eternally doomed to be a step behind his brother, Waluigi was eternally doomed to be a step behind his own, by the fate of being born second, and remaining second from then on. Wario looked up at him, concerned as well as taken aback.

"What do you mean? How do you know what he feels?"

"Because." Waluigi frowned, not wanting to admit to this, but knowing the conversation had gone too far to avoid it. "I live it as well. Second best. Always second best to the champion brother."

Wario let out a snort of laughter, shaking his head.

"Pfft. I'm no champion!"

"Well you are to me, brat! Now don't start that up again!" Waluigi snarled, reddening again. Wario seemed bashfully smug at the compliment.

"At least you've got something- you & Mario are, well, you're the one's who'll get your names in game titles & stories. You're Mario's counterpart... I'm Luigi's. And if he's the second best hero, well, that makes me the second best villain.""

"Hey, you're a _fantastic_ bad ass!" Wario smirked, tossing some pasta onto Waluigi's plate before sitting with his own.

"But I'm not the best. I learned from the best." Waluigi said through a mouthful of pasta, swinging his fork.

"We're a TEAM!"

"So are Mario & Luigi. Does that stop him from being left in the dust?!"

"Well, I don't give a damn what any stupid fans, game makers or nintendo geeks think! We know we're _both_ kick ass- we''re a team, man! And a freakin' awesome one." Wario proclaimed proudly, and Waluigi cackled.

"Friggin' A!" Then his smile faded slightly, and he laid down his fork.

"What- what''s wrong? Too much garlic?!"

"No, it's- that's delicious. It's just- I can't help but still feel bad about Luigi. Poor guy. Where did he run off to? I mean... I'd probably be the last person in the world he''d want to see, but there wouldn't be any harm in trying to talk to him...right?"

This stunned Wario. His baby brother- WALUIGI- wanted to go and try to talk to and _help_ his mortally sworn enemy, Luigi? He hoped it wasn't just his cooking...

"Sure, I mean, if you _want_ to." Wario stared at his brother, shoveling another heaping fork-full of pasta into his mouth.

"I know, it sounds crazy- I'm- I just want to help, for once. I guess I kinda know what he's thinking right now, you know? I mean, I''ve thought of leav- I mean- are you ready to go?" Waluigi tittered nervously, starting to eat furiously. Wario dropped his fork and started to choke on his food.

"ACK!! What?! What did you just say?! You were going to LEAVE ME here?! You little-" Wario leapt from the table, and Waluigi jumped up in turn, running for the door.

"WAIT! That was a long time ago! You don't want to follow me out here, you've got sauce all over your face and shirt! What will the neighbors think!"

And with that, though slightly unfocused on the task at hand, the evil brothers set out on a not-so-evil search for the disheartened Mario brother, in hopes of convincing him to go home.

"I'll throttle your scrawny neck!"

(Things don't seem too probable at the moment.)

---

Luigi was looking at the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. He was so taken aback by her, he didn''t even realize he was gawking like an idiot. In turn, the young woman saw his face and gasped. She stood for a moment, returning the same stare before taking her chin off the ground. Could this really be?!

"Oh my goodness- you, it's- I know you!"

Instantly, Luigi's trance was shattered. Oh, wonderful. He knew exactly where this was going. This girl either thought he was Mario, or wanted a ticket to Mario. His amazed look was replaced by a bland, dull one. He stood to his feet, dusting off his plumber pants.

"No, you thinking of my brother." He sighed, giving her a weak smile. "Um, I was on my way somewhere..."

"Nonsense! I wasn't thinking of your brother, he's the guy in the _red_ pants, right?"

"Right. And he's not here, if you're looking for him. Anyway, I must be off..." Luigi frowned, starting to walk into the darkness of the woods. He was startled by a surprisingly firm hand on his arm.

"Hey! Who says I was looking for him? Who says I was looking for anyone? Besides, my friend always plays Mario in the games. I always call dibs on another player." She smiled, and Luigi felt woozy. What a knock out smile...

"Oh. Uh, w-who do you play?" He stammered, and she smiled shyly.

"You. You're my favorite... always have been." She sighed, and Luigi blushed profusely.

"Ah- uh, really..." he giggled, rubbing the back of his neck. She was staring up at him, straight in the eye, and it was really doing a number on him. This woman reminded him of- of her, so much...

"You don't remember me, do you." She smiled sadly, hands smoothing back her mounds of chocolate curls. Now Luigi looked confused.

"Remember you?" He chuckled. "I'm sure I would, if I'd- I mean, not that you're... how do you know me?" He managed to get that out at least, then bit down on his bottom lip.

"I remember you. Well, it's sort of hard to forget you now, with you being so famous and all..."

"_Pfft._ Famous..." Luigi snorted, laughing sarcastically. She raised an eyebrow and he quickly shut up.

"Wow... I never knew you lived around here. I always thought you & Mario moved away after high school... we never saw you guys after."

"High school? You knew me in high school?! Oh, great." Luigi rolled his eyes, groaning. "Well then I already know what you must think of me."

"No you don't. That's just the problem. I actually tried to get a hold of you, after you left. I tried for months, but you were always away- you were always off on some adventure with your brother, not that I can blame you... you guys _do_ have other responsibilities, you know, besides taking girls phone calls..."

"Called me?! You- high school? You knew me from high school, and you were trying to get a hold of _me_? Not Mario, but me?"

"YES, YOU!" She barked. "After me and Peach stopped being friends..."

That's when a hard, harsh reality hit Luigi.  
Uh oh.  
This was who he thought it was, at very first, when he heard her voice... the girl who single handedly ruined his life in high school. The one girl who had his heart in the palm of her hand- had held it there for YEARS, and destroyed it- crushed it the second she realized she had it, and what she meant to him. Oh, how he''d vowed _never_ to trust a woman with his feelings again, after that incident...

Luigi swallowed hard, memories flooding back faster than the embarrassed, painful tears that stung his eyes. _'Oh for God's sakes, you crybaby. Battling evil for all these years and you can't stop blubbering for 10 seconds?'_

"I know who you are. I remember you..." He said, voice soft and shaky. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, I thought you''d forgotten me!"

"Oh trust me. I never forgot _you_, Daisy." Luigi said bitterly, jaw locked against the tears. If he cried, he'd relive the humiliation all over again. But it was a hurt that had lived in him for so long, so deep, and it was rising to the surface like some form of long dwelling illness. She looked at the ground, obviously knowing what he meant.

"Listen... some things back then- there were a few misunderstandings. Things were said you know, things happened and- well, you found out some things that I don''t think you understand too clearly. See-"

"No, I understand. I understand it as one of the most hellish ordeals I ever ended up in." Luigi said grimly, lost in a whirlwind of the past.

"You aren't the _only_ one..."

**Flashback **

"Isn't Mario gorgeous?!" Peach squealed, and the young man gathered attention from a crowd of like-graded individuals.

"Must you say that every day?" Daisy, guffawed, finishing off a slice of watermelon at their picnic lunch table. She was so pleased to be eating outdoors with her schoolmates again in the _sunshine_, after all the rain they'd been getting lately...

"I don't say it _every_ day-"

"I don't recall one day out of the twelve years of school we've been in that you haven't commented on him and his 'perfect smile, eyes, hair'-"

"SHHH!!! Bowser is coming, you know how he gets when he hears me going on about Mario!"

"Why do you hang around with Bowser anyway? He seems like such a jerk. I don't understand why he's so freakin' popular..."

"You hang with him too, Daisy!"

"Only because I feel bad for him! He only comes around so much because he likes us..."

"Hush, he's-"

"Well, good evening ladies." Bowser growled, grinning slyly, laying his elbow on the picnic table the lovely girls were sitting at, out on the lunch field. Bowser was definitely a catch in this school- he came from a very rich family, and many girls were in to the bad boys. But Bowser was a very finicky individual to please- he either dated royalty, or he dated nothing. Hence, he pursued the lovely princesses non stop ever since they were nothing but kids, hoping to score a date with either. Trouble was, the girls had their sights set elsewhere, and they were too frightened to let the scaley wealth-bag know. Who _knows_ what Bowser was capable of doing, if the wrong button was pushed. They didn''t want to find out...

"Hi, Bowser!" Peach said, mocking enthusiasm. "How's your day going?"

"Hi." Daisy offered dully, eyes stuck somewhere else as the conversation carried on without her. She didn't care, she was somewhere else- watching somewhere else. Somewhere that a thin, auburn haired young man clad in green sat beneath a schoolyard tree, reading a book intently with piercing blue eyes, every now and then gazing up in amusement at his brother, who was soaking up the scene. But no, not him, not Luigi. Not quiet, shy, generous, beautiful-

"Hello?! It was a blast, right Daisy? Anyone in there?" Peach laughed, tapping gently on the occupied girls forehead. Daisy jumped and blinked slowly, turning red.

"Who?" She spurted, trying to act as though she was in tune with the conversation. Bowser adapted a sour look and Peach barked out a laugh.

"You dork- I was talking about yesterday, when we ran down to Koopa Troopa beach..."

"Oh, right! It was fantastic down there, Bowser. Have you ever been there?" Daisy said quickly, nervous as Bowser began staring between her and the Mario brothers. He huffed out a sharp breath.

"Oh, don't tell me you're interested in that geek!"

"Who?" Daisy snapped, involuntarily saucy sounding at the idea of hearing_ one_ more person call Luigi a geek...

"That Mario loser. Big deal, what a show off. 'Hey check me out, I'm Mario. I'm a fat guy that can jump high!' Hey, watch this. You watching?" Bowser got up, a sneer planted to his face.

"See this?" He began to jump up and down. "Amazing isn''t it. I like to call it 'I CAN JUMP TOO, you dumb, overweight spaghetti vacuum!'" Bowser barked in Mario's direction, but Mario didn't take notice, too busy amusing a crowd to even notice the insult. Luigi, on the other hand, distinctly heard the witticism, and felt a sting of anger.  
_'Glorified iguana thinks he can make fun of my brother and get away with it, does he? See how he likes hopping on this!'_ And with as much discretion as he could muster, Luigi sent a green fireball across the lot and onto Bowsers hopping behind. A loud howl filled Luigi with satisfaction, and he casually went back to his book as Bowser ran back into the school, holding his green-flamed tail. Luigi ignored any and all curious questions about the fact that the green flame seemed to have 'come out of nowhere', and the 'I wonder who made it?' questions.

With Bowser now inside the building, the two princesses erupted in the laughter that they were withholding the whole time.

"Oh my gracious... that was prefect!"

"And I thought we'd never get rid of him..." Daisy giggled, sitting down and adjusting her mahogany curls. Peach sat beside her, and when Daisy looked up, she found her best friend Mario-watching again.

"Why don''t you just go over and talk to him, Peach? I bet he'd _love_ to date you."

"I could ask _you_ the same thing." Peach said coolly, folding her arms. Daisy cocked a confused eyebrow.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Yeah- Bowser said he saw you watching Mario. You never even told me you liked him!"

"Maybe because Bowser was _wrong_, and I wasn't watching Mario."

"Oh, really." Peach smirked, leaning forward with a sarcastic grin. "And why would I believe that? Everyone likes Mario. I''m not mad, Daisy. That would be silly, being angry at you for that. I mean, I wouldn't blame you..." Peach smiled, eyes drifting back over to the red clad plumber again.

"You'd believe it because I'm not interested in Mario, unlike every other girl in this school." Daisy chuckled, watching fox kick a ball at Link's back, and burst out laughing when the blonde tumbled forward onto his face.

"Huh? Well who on earth would you like better than Mario?!"

"Um... to tell you the truth, I''ve always had a crush on someone else." Daisy blushed, running a finger along the cracks on the table shyly. Peach now wore a broad, curious grin.

"Really? How come you never told me? Aw, how adorable. Come on, Daisy- I'm your best friend, you can tell _me_!"

"Alright, fine. To be honest, I've never been interested in Mario because... I really, _really_ like Luigi."

"Who?" Peach asked blankly, blinking obliviously. Daisy seemed agitated by this.

"What do you mean, who? Luigi! He's Mario's brother! You know, he's tall and lean, instead of _short_ and _fat_..." Daisy joked, and Peach still had a vacant stare. Daisy huffed loudly.

"Oh for goodness sakes, Peach!" Daisy grabbed Peach's blonde head, shoving it towrds the tree Luigi was under. Daisy looked in another direction, trying to appear inconspicuous. "He's right there, under the tree, reading the book! He's got on the green...what?" Daisy snapped, because Peach had begun to laugh. "What, what are you laughing at?!"

"Good one, Daisy. You had me going for a bit... _Luigi_... oh my God!" She chirped in laughter, covering her eyes and shaking her head as she continued to giggle. Daisy was starting to get truly annoyed.

"For your information, I'm not joking. At all. I think he's gorgeous!"

"You're serious? Jeez... well I guess If you think things like toads are gorgeous-"

"What's the matter with you? Luigi is such a great person! I bet he'd be a way better person to date than Mario- at least he''d pay attention to _you_, and not himself." Daisy commented, rolling her eyes.

"Oh please, that scrawny bookworm? I wouldn't call that dating, I'd call it pet-sitting." Peach giggled, eyes still locked on the energetic plumber. Wow, did he have pretty eyes...she didn't even notice how angry her friend looked at her comment. How dare Peach! She obviously didn't even know the guy...

"Shut up, Peach!" Daisy snapped, eyes still fixated on the young man in green, anything but her rude friend. "Luigi is a lovely person, and he always has been to you! Who helped you before your mid term last year, huh? And who gave you the coat off of his back that time you had to walk back to the kingdom in the snowstorm? He walked all the way home in a t shirt, and you never even remembered who he was- you never even gave the coat back! And you only like Mario because he's an attention hog, unlike Luigi. But just like YOU." Before Peach could even turn to look shocked, Daisy was storming off. Peach put a gloved hand to her lips, devastated. She felt horrible. She never realized her friend liked the auburn haired Mario brother so much... she never thought ill of Luigi at all, she'd only meant to tease her friend. Of course she respected Luigi, he'd always been so kind to her... she looked over at the lithe Mario brother, sitting under the tree and laughing heartily as his older brother approached him, barking out something in Italian. Peach blushed profusely at the idea of going over there so close to Mario- she'd probably make a dork of herself. But she owed it to her best friend, for being so insensitive. She felt so guilty now, thinking of what she'd said, knowing Daisy had taken her seriously. She was going to do this. Daisy would thank her later. Boldly, before the lunch bell rang, Peach plowed her way through the throng of soon to be heroes and villains.

"I know, I always thought Samus was a dude. But Falcon- how low, he's such a pervert-"

"Mario..."

"Oh yeah and then Kirby came in and the look on his-"

"MARIO!" Luigi hissed, and his older brother halted in what he was saying instantly.

"What is it? I wasn't even finished telling my story..."

"I know, I'm sorry- but Peach is coming over here."

Mario's eyes widened considerably, and he flushed.

"Peach? As in the princess? As in-"

"YES the blonde one, the one you''ve got a crush on, she's-"

"I THOUGHT I told you to say that _only_ in Italian!"

"She's coming up behind you, Mario."

"Oh God, Luigi, how's my hair? My teeth? Is there anything-"

"Hi boys!" The beautiful girl approached them, tossing a heap of lovely golden curls behind a shoulder. Mario swallowed hard and turned to face her nervously.

"Oh- hi Mario, I'm- I mean YOU'RE Peach, I'm... I'm an idiot." Mario grumbled to himself, humiliated. Peach couldn't even face him, her heart was pounding so hard. She didn't know Mario all too well, but when she got near him, it had the most explosive effect on her. Just watching him from the distance was breath taking. Goodness knows what a fool she'd make of herself if she engaged the gorgeous young man in conversation... hearing him stumble over himself was so cute.

"Hi, Mario. Hey, Luigi." She smiled sweetly, and Luigi was biting his tongue ferociously, trying so hard not to laugh at his brother. The poor guy had worn this crush around since first grade. For all his confidence and bravery, Mario could sure go from steel to sand around Peach.

"Hey, Peach." Luigi greeted warmly. "What's up?"

"Well-uhm, Luigi, a-are you busy tonight?" She asked, and she'd asked it about a billion times casually in her head before actually doing it herself. Both brothers looked at each other at lightening speed- where was this going?

"Hmm, no, not considerably. Why would you ask?" Luigi pondered. What on earth did Peach want with HIM? Surely this had some connection to Mario...

"Uh- well, I was- I'm sort of wondering if you have a girlfriend, firstly." Even though this wasn't for her, it still made her face flame red upon the question. How very suggestive this seemed! She dug a pink heel into the ground, twisting it shyly. Luigi swallowed very, very hard, and a felt like a falling boulder had hit him in the guts. Oh, no. _'Please don't let her be asking me out please don't let her be asking me out please please PLEASE'_

"No-" Luigi choked, and cleared his throat loudly. "No, I don't." It's not that he never found Peach pretty- he thought she was drop dead gorgeous, and a brilliant girl to boot. But his heart was set somewhere else, somewhere that he'd probably NEVER get to, and his poor brother was so insanely crazy about this girl. It would BEYOND crush Mario, having her ask Luigi out.

"Well, that's fantastic." She declared. To his horror, Peach began to lean in, and for a moment, he was positive she was going to kiss him. Instead, she turned, whispering in the young mans ear.

"Meet me at the Koopa Troopa Beach café tonight, at 8:30... it would mean so much to me, if you did." With a shy smile and a wink, Peach leaned back expectantly.

"Promise?" She asked, running a gloved hand down along a few golden strands of hair.

"Sure, uh- I''ll be there." Luigi stammered, very red and confused. Peach seemed ecstatic at his confirmation.

"Oh, perfect. See you then, Luigi! Bye, Mario..." She blushed, then walked off quickly into the horde of students. Luigi was so embarrassed, and he wouldn''t dare look up at his brother. He was scared of what he might find if he did. Oh, brother...  
As for Peach? She was aware of what it looked like, but it would all make sense in no time. There was no question about it at all in her mind. She _knew_ that boy was crazy about her best friend, Daisy. He was the one guy who never ceased to look up from his book whenever she entered a room, walked by, made an appearance... she also could never forget the adorable but hilarious note that Mr. Bizzibode had snatched from Luigi's desk, chortling as it described the blushing girl's beautiful brown hair, dazzling eyes and pretty voice. Even though it was so long ago, she could still see that admiration hidden in the cautious glances today, the discreet admiration that Daisy just seemed too blind to acknowledge. But now Peach was going to make things work. Now that she knew her best friend was as crazy about that shy young Mario brother as he was her, she'd make sure they'd both know it somehow. She loved seeing people happy, and if she could cause it, even better.

Little did Peach know that upon feeling guilty after her big blowout, Daisy had made a return to apologize for going off the handle. Instead, she discovered her best friend, approaching the guy she'd liked ever since she''d known he'd existed. Stealthily, she got close enough to hear what was going on. Things seemed to go in slow motion from there on in... Peach asking him if he had a girlfriend... Daisy thought that she was going to choke on her own breath as she could have sworn to the Lord above that her best friend had just kissed the guy that she confessed to being crazy about not even 15 minutes ago. She was whispering in his ear, and Mario looked like he was going to pass out. All her worst case scenarios happened at once. Peach was confirming a date with Luigi. Before she could even control herself, angry tears stung Daisy's eyes bitterly. Was this some kind of scathing punishment for the harsh things Daisy had said? Was this Peach's terrible means of revenge? She didn''t stay to find out. Instead Daisy fled back into the school, overwhelmed with the heartbreak of what was happening, the disbelief in what her friend was doing, the fact that Luigi wouldn''t be single anymore...she locked herself in the bathroom stall, curling into her pretty daffodil colored dress, and began to sob. Everything was ruined...

'_Everything is going according to plan'_, Peach beamed, and the school bell rang the students back in for classes.

**-----**

_Well that's it for chapter three- if you loved it or loathed it, let me know ;)  
The second part of the flashback is coming with chapter four- I consider it a very valuable piece of information for the rest of the story, hence why this flashback is longer than any other you've ever seen. Plus, I find the idea of teenaged Mario brothers so damn cool. :P  
Anyway thanks everyone, R&R, I'll be updating again soon!_


	4. The Evening that Ruined All

_Hope everyone is still enjoying, judging by the reviews I'd assume so  
Continuing on with the world's longest flashback, R&R, and enjoy...  
__  
-----  
_

**Understudied Understudies**

As Luigi was adjusting his unruly curls in the mirror, his mind was whirling with worry. He'd gone into Biology class to find the seat ahead of him empty. The seat ahead of him was always filled by one person: Daisy. He'd missed seeing her glossy curls all that afternoon. He wondered what had happened to her? She had been there all that morning...

"Luigi?" Mario popped his head into the emerald bedroom. Luigi's back went as tense as a metal pole. His brother hadn't talked to him all evening. He figured Mario was mad at him, and in turn, Luigi was angry at him for being angry. What right did he have to be angry? He didn't ask the princess over. But now he just felt sorry for Mario. The one time Luigi was getting attention in his life, and he was feeling sorry that Mario wasn't. Go figure. Mario crossed the room, smiling to himself. If he couldn't do it, only Luigi could manage to.

"You look great, bro!" Mario chuckled, fixing Luigi's emerald hued bow tie. Luigi blushed shyly and laughed.

"Uh, thanks Mario." Then he looked at the floor. "I thought you were mad at me... you know, I don't consider this a date, you're just supposed to wear-"

"Wear evening attire to the café, I know Luigi." Mario laughed at the panic stricken expression on his younger brothers face. "Even if it is a date, it's none of my business."

"It's not! Um, and it's _mine_... you've liked her since-"

"Luigi." Mario stated, cutting off the nervous young man. "Listen. Even if it is a date, she wanted it. I don't _own_ her! You can't force her to like anyone. And if she likes you, power to her. You can't hand pick a better guy for her to date." Mario grinned, and Luigi was shell-shocked by this. Was his brother giving him the ok to date the girl he'd crushed on before Luigi had moved out of his item throwing phase? Him and Peach would always play together in the front yard, and even then Mario had an air of infatuation about him. He'd race back into the house in the evenings, telling the speechless baby all about how he was going to marry the cute little blonde, and how they'd ride ponies together. Apparently, Luigi was welcome to live with them. And now, Mario was willing to step aside to see his brother have a taste of glory, or happiness. Luigi could've cried, knowing what this meant to Mario, and the fact that he was accepting the idea was concrete evidence of how much Mario cared.

"You're awesome, bro." Luigi smiled, hugging his older brother tightly. Mario hugged back, taking the younger brother off the ground easily.

"Uh, Mario, you're doing it again- I can't feel my legs-"

"SORRY, sorry..." Mario quickly let Luigi down, who huffed in a breath. Ah, oxygen... "Some times I forget my strength..."

"No problem, I can take it." Luigi laughed, shoving a curl out of his eyes. He checked his watch. "We still have time to play a few rounds on the Nintendo, you know..."

"You're on!"

—

"Daisy? Where have you been all day? I never saw you after lunch... you're not still mad at me, are you?"

"Oh...no, uh, I just got really sick... was really paining... I went home." It wasn't a lie. She was sick to her stomach...

"You're not sick now, are you?"

"No, I'm fine." Other than the fact that I want to stay in bed forever, thanks to _you..._

"Thank goodness... because I have something _super _important to tell you! It's really important, and I don't want you to get mad, ok? You've got to meet me at the Koopa Troopa Café tonight at 8:30, I have something to show you and I need you to be there, ok? Promise you'll be there."

"Sure, whatever. 8:30?"

"8:30, table seven. You're so awesome, Daisy! Please don't forget, this is so important to me, ok? See you then!"

"Alright, see ya." Daisy frowned, and hung up the phone quickly as tears began to stream down her face again. _'Why would he want to date her, anyway? I was always so good to him... maybe he never liked me at all, and just used me to get to her...'_ she thought, and upon that thought, promptly bust into sobs on her plush, silk sheets.

In the meantime, chaos was about to unfold. Bowser, being the determined creep that he was, had slithered his way up to Princess Toadstools balcony with a batch of freshly picked roses from the little old lady next door's garden. His intentions were always honest, but nobody had yet realized how truly malicious Bowser was. He wasn't always a bad guy, you know. Not until the very moment he heard the second phone call. He'd just heard Peach telling Daisy to meet her at the Koopa Troopa Café that night at 8:30... something important to tell her... this sounded juicy! Keeping a low profile, he hid by the crack in her balcony door, listening to her dial another number. She waited for a moment...

"Hi, Mario! Is Luigi there?"

Bowser nearly collapsed into the door. He steadied himself, brows drawn low. MARIO?! LUIGI?! What was she doing, calling those super losers?

"Hey Luigi! Still going to meet me tonight at the café, 8:30?" She asked, twisting a lock of blonde hair. WHAT?! What was this? No! _Anyone _but Luigi!

"Yeah, of course! You know, you really cracked me up today. What you did was hilarious!" Peach chirped laughter into the phone. "What do you mean, what did you do? I know it was you, Luigi! I've seen your fireballs before... you're the only person I know who shoots green fireballs! You think I wouldn't notice _green _flames? You bad ass..." she chuckled, lying back on the bed. Bowser was swallowing down lump after lump of fire, his head feeling like it was going to explode. That scrawny, b-rate booger coated loser had done that to him? _Luigi _was the one responsible for embarrassing him in from of the whole school?! In front of the girls that he liked?! Oh, that did it. That _did _it. _Nobody _makes a fool of Bowser! ESPECIALLY not a Mario brother!

"Ok, see you then Luigi... it's a date." She giggled shyly into the phone, only increasing Bowsers rage. So that's what Peach was up to. Trying to set up her poor friend with a loser like Luigi to get at the 'fantastic' Mario. Well, not if he could help it. Not if _he _could set Luigi up for a huge fall... he was going to get that stupid green jerk back for what he did. He would single handedly ruin Luigi's life, in any manner he could do it. Quickly flying down Peach's balcony, filled with an uncontrollable rage, he began to concoct his plan. He'd heard that Peach and Daisy had gotten in a huge fight earlier that day, and he wanted to know over what...

—

"Please, no!!!" Screamed the cute little flowers, who had been uprooted from Daisy's garden. "Don't, please, we'll _die-_"

"SHUT UP!" Bowser yelled, still holding a bag of plant devouring beetles over their petalled heads. "I know Daisy comes out to her garden and talks to you little losers whenever she's upset- now I want to know why she's upset and I want to know NOW!!!" He demanded, and one flower stuck out it's tongue at him. They knew Bowser all too well- he always came by the garden, trying to get information out of them, making threats. He never acted on them though, they knew he wasn't _that _bad...

What they _didn't _know was, today was different.

Today, things had changed. Something had snapped inside of Bowser... his heart had been skewered, diced and blended into oblivion today, knowing the two girls he'd had a crush on ever since he was a young pipsqueak actually thought he was a laughing stock. He'd had enough. He wasn't the same rebellious but sympathetic trouble maker anymore. He was now used, and cold...

"Very well..." Bowser smiled evilly, plucking up the little squealing daisy.

"What are you doing?! Put her down! NO! WAIT! NOOO!!!"

But it was too late. And with a horrible scream, the delicate little daisy was dropped into the bag, and devoured instantly. A long, horrified silence filled the room, and Bowser felt something new.

He felt semi-avenged, he felt strong... powerful even. He heaved a long, heavy breath.

"Now. Lets try this again. Tell me what's happened to Daisy, or you don't get to speak ever again."

---

Daisy was drying the last of her tears, waiting for her eyelashes to dry so she could apply some mascara. Although she was still enraged at her friend, she still felt she should hear her out. After all, maybe there was some good reason she was _asking the guy of her dreams out-_

_Knock knock knock._

With an irritated sigh, Daisy got up, adjusting her lovely autumn colored dress, and opened her door. To her utter shock and partial horror, there was Bowser, quite dressed up, and holding a bouquet of wild flowers.

"Well hello, Daisy. I see you're ready to go to the Koopa Troopa Café..."

"Um... yes? But what are you doing here?"

"Actually, um... I sort of came by, wondering if you had a date for the event. I hope I'm not too late?"

Daisy was very puzzled. What was Bowser getting on with?

"No... I didn't know I needed one!"

"Oh!" Bowser murmured, surprised. "That's strange. I just stopped over to Peach's house, she said she had a date- she also said she wasn't sure if _you _had one, so she said if I wanted to, I could probably stop over, maybe escort you? If it's no bother to you, my dear Princess..." Bowser, smiled, offering the flowers shyly. She took them, her brows drawn close. She put gloved fingertips to her forehead, confused.

"Ok, wait a minute. You say Peach had a date? Who on earth is she bringing? She never told me this was a date event."

"Really?" Bowser frowned, and the look of confused shock on his face could fool anyone into believing it. "She told me she'd told you on the phone... she's bringing uh, what's his face- Mario's brother? Is it Louie?"

Was she falling through the floor? She had to be... she had to be melting into a puddle of upset nothingness... no. How _could_ she?

"Luigi?" She choked, fingers in her hair. "Luigi Mario? The guy who's always in the green? Sort of longish curly red-brown hair, blue eyes..."

"Yes, that's him, he was at her house with her. I don't think they expected me." Bowser blushed.

"What do you mean." Daisy asked. She didn't want to know, she really didn't, but she had to. _No no no no no..._

"Well, I kind of... climbed up Peach's balcony. I know, I know, it's creepy- but the toads really hate me, I always have to go up that way when I visit her. I just poked my head in to see her and...well..." Bowser rubbed the back of his neck, seemingly embarrassed.

"WHAT? What were they doing?" Daisy demanded, fists clenched. _You can take this, Daisy. You can handle this..._

"Well... they were sort of... kissing. A lot. And it was pretty damn awkward..." Bowser chuckled, looking at the floor. God, he could be the best actor in Hollywood if he had the ambition for it. _Too much. That's too much. It hurts too much..._ tears were pushing towards her eyes, and she looked at the ceiling to keep them from falling.

"Did they say anything about tonight?"

"Um... actually, I don't know if I should tell you this, Daisy. I don't want to hurt your feelings... I always figured you had a thing for Luigi, you were always looking at him and talking to him... I don't want to make you feel bad before going out tonight. I mean, I'd still love you to go, and have a good time..."

"Please, Bowser. If something was said about me, I'd like to know." She said, preparing for the final blow. What else could they have done? What more could they have pulled that could crush her further than this? Bowser now put on a sympathetic face, taking Daisy's hand.

"Listen Daisy... I'd never want you to hurt at all. But if you want to know this, I'll tell you."

"Bowser, I want to know. Please..."

"Alright, as you wish. Well, I sort of- I asked Luigi, you know... why Peach? I mean, I always figured you & him- you know, thought it was inevitable-"

"I know, me too-"

"That you two would end up dating. He just sort of looked at me, you know? Like I was stupid or something. Then he just barked 'why would I want to date _her?' _And I figured that was pretty obvious, so I said I thought you were really pretty, and it was evident you liked him. He... well, he just sort of laughed and said 'Pfft- well I don't care. If I wanted to date something like that I'd date...'" Bowser bit his lip, and Daisy sighed.

"What. What did he say."

"Please don't cry."

"Tell me what he said!"

"He said he'd rather date a Lakitu brother than you. And the two of them just started laughing... I didn't know what to say..."

That was it. Enough. She'd had enough.

Daisy erupted into bitter, mournful sobs, storming across the room and grabbing a picture of her, peach and the two Mario brothers at a party from her night table. She threw it so hard that it bounced off the wall into thousands of little pieces. She then shredded the photo inside. Sitting in the heap of glass, she shook with sobs. She hated them. She hated them both so much... Bowser rushed to her side, helping her over to the bed and dusting the glass shards from her dress.

"Princess! Don't harm yourself..."

"I hate him. I _hate _him, Bowser. What a self centered, horrible jerk. Him _and _Peach!" She barked, tears dripping onto the pretty gown. "You know what?!" She snarled, standing and grabbing a pen and paper. She began scribbling furiously, pen on paper like a vicious blade. She then shoved the letter into an envelope, signed it 'Luigi' And tossed it in Bowsers direction.

"As for PEACH!" She ripped out a clean sheet of paper, scrawling over it with as much fury as the last, and stuffed it into an envelope labeled 'Peach'. Bowser took them both, putting them in his coat pocket, and frowned thoughtfully.

"Why have you given me these?" He asked uneasily, and Daisy sat at her mirror, eyes dark and downcast.

"Because I'm not going, Bowser. Sorry for leaving you hanging... but I don't want to see either of them ever again. Please, have a nice night." She sighed, putting her head in her hands.

"I'm sorry to hear that princess, but I respect your decision. I'm here if you ever need me... ok? See you..."

"Yeah... bye." She managed, and As the door shut, she ripped a photo of her and Peach down from her mirror, demolishing it. _I hate you both..._

—

"Have a nice night bro, see ya later!"

"See ya Mario!" Luigi smiled, looking back at him older brother. "And Mario? Thanks a lot, again- it really means a lot."

"Well, don't think anything of it, I know you'd do the same for me." Mario smiled, and slowly shut the door as his brother walked off into the night. With the door safely closed, finally, he could let his true feelings out. And he cried, and cried, and cried, eating supper alone and feeling more heart broken than he'd ever felt in his life. He couldn't believe this was happening.

For all the attention he got, he'd only craved it from one person, and she wasn't interested in him at all. But he'd never be bitter, he'd never show any stitch of unhappiness. Because nobody deserved this more than his younger brother- and there was only one person he could possibly love more than Peach, and that was Luigi. His brothers happiness came before his, and he'd rather see himself in all the unhappy situations in the world before putting his baby brother in one. Though he was hurting terribly, he could hold it together, knowing his little brother finally had another chance at being happy. But why did it have to hurt so much?

—

Luigi sat at the table, drumming a gloved hand on its surface. He checked his watch. 8:50. He relaxed into the chair, sighing. Odd. It was very strange for Peach to be late for anything...

"Would you like to order?" A waiter asked, and Luigi smiled politely.

"No, thank you. I'm waiting for another person to get here."

"Very well then, sir." the waiter nodded, wandering off. Luigi took another sip of water and rested his chin in his hands, bored. Where was she?

—

Peach dialed Daisy's number for the third time, and again got no answer. She smiled to herself smugly. Perfect. She must have left already. Her best friend was probably approaching table seven right now, stunned and overjoyed to find her favorite Mario brother sitting there, waiting. She snorted out a laugh at the idea of Daisy finding herself trapped on a dinner date with Luigi. Oh, if she could only see it for herself...

—

9:00... Peach should have been there half an hour ago. Luigi's stomach growled and he shrugged. Oh well, an appetizer couldn't hurt! He was about to make an order when suddenly, the door burst open to the Café, and in strolled Bowser. _Oh, great_. Luigi thought, diving gloved fingers into his perfectly shaped curls. He dreaded having to hear this losers voice barking and squawking all evening. At least all the people would drown him out a bit... but what was this? Why was he coming over?

"Luigi? Is Luigi here?" Bowser called out, and the room full of high school students out socializing or dating went completely silent. Ugh. Maybe Bowser found out it was him who created the fireball, and wanted to tell him off. He could handle Bowser no problem.

"Yeah, over here, Bowser." Luigi smirked, and the monstrous individual made his way over.

"Waiting for somebody?" Bowser frowned, standing by the table. Perfect. It was so like Bowser to cause a scene...

"Yeah, Peach asked me to come here. Why, what do you want?"

"Well, I thought you might like to know, Peach isn't coming."

Luigi raised an eyebrow, sighing loudly.

"Is that so. And why not?"

"Because... she set this event up for Daisy. She set you guys up for a blind date- sorry I'm late, I was supposed to get here earlier, but I only got back from Daisy's just then."

Everyone in the building let out jeering 'oooooh's at the prospect of a blind date for Daisy and Luigi. Bowser looked down at the young man, who was blushing profusely.

"Really? W-with Daisy? Wow... I mean, I never even told her I- I mean, why, does Daisy like me or something?"

"Well, Daisy's parents are out of town, so I told Peach I'd give her a ride... I went down to pick her up. Weird thing was, she wasn't ready. Told me to give you this..." Bowser dipped into his pocket, taking out the letter addressed 'Luigi' with an expression of pure mirth.

"She wanted me to read it to you... would you like to hear it?" Bowser asked, and Luigi had not only a knot in his stomach, but a lump in his throat as well. He was so shy, and being the center of attention was really embarrassing him.

"Um, actually, if you could just keep your voice-"

"Dear Luigi!" Bowser started loudly, clearing his throat. "I think you're a selfish, self centered jerk, and I wouldn't go on a date with you if you payed me. As a matter of fact, I'd rather date a rock over you, you horrible, disgusting loser. Your brother is a billion times nicer than you, and you're probably closer related to a worm. I hope I never have to see you again, and I don't want you to speak to me anymore. I hate you, Luigi. Please, kindly leave me the hell alone! Signed, Princess Daisy."

Luigi felt like a cold, icy slab of marble. He couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't think- he could just flood his face with a bright blush, and swallow down lump after lump of mortified, embarrassed tears.

"Give me that." He hissed at Bowser, figuring it was just a prank. To his horror, the writing was spot on, every curve on the r and every cross on every t was 100 Princess Daisy's writing. It was even written in her lovely, wildflower scented ink. Luigi stared at it long and hard, truly in disbelief. "Oh... oh my God." He gulped, voice very low and shaky in the dead silence of the room, every eye in the building watching, every ear listening. "She really did write this." He mumbled, still staring down at the hateful words. Slowly, quietly, he folded the letter back up, placing it back into the envelope. Slipping it into his pocket, Luigi stood, eyes brimming with shimmering pools of hurt. "She really wrote those things about me."

"PFFT! What a LOSER!" King Boo snorted, letting out a long, eerie cackle. All the villains in the room exploded in laughter instantly, and Bowser's loud, booming laughter filled the room as Luigi slowly walked from the restaurant, tears rolling down his toned cheeks. _She really wrote those things about me.  
_'_I hate you, Luigi.'  
_And this was the worst day of his life.

-----

_Ok, I've just made myself terribly sad. Ow, my heart._ LOL _What a mess!_  
_The next installment will come very soon, I'm on a writing rampage. :P  
Anyway, au, if you liked it R&R! Hope you're having as much fun reading this as I am writing it, because I'm having tons!  
See you next installment. _


	5. Dealing With Being a Hero

_Hey everyone! Sorry on the delay, was revving up for V-Day... and happy belated V-day, on that note! I hope everyone has adequately gained girth with the holiday...LOL  
Anyway, on with the show, and au, if you like what you see, R&R! Enjoy! _

-----

Eternal Understudies

Mario jumped considerably when the front door to the house slammed, announcing Luigi's arrival. Mario checked his watch, puzzled. It was only 9:30. What was he doing back so early?  
SLAM!!!  
Mario flinched. That would be Luigi's room door. Uh oh...  
Slipping off his bed, Mario quietly rushed to the hall, staring down at the door just a few feet from his own. Dare he find out? Instantly, Mario felt very defensive. If anyone had done _anything _to hurt Luigi...  
Tap-tap.

"Luigi?" Mario's voice was gentle, and tentative. He was very likely to get rejected right off the bat...

"Please, n-not now, Mario..." A soft, dismal sob. The sound of him was so weak and defeated, Mario felt a wave of sadness from it. He waited a few moments, and could distinctly hear his brother trying very hard to cover up an onslaught of tears. This was the hardest part of being responsible for Luigi, for Mario. Whatever happened to him affected him so much. If Luigi was crying, Mario felt like crying. If Luigi felt like shit, Mario felt like shit. And now that Luigi was obviously devastated over something, he wanted to punish whoever did it.

He decided going in without a word would work best- talking to Luigi while he was crying would only agitate him. But he couldn't just stand out and listen to him cry- it was too much. Taking in a long breath, Mario opened the door preparing for the worst. He froze, squeezing his eyes shut in case of flying objects, like books or green flames. When nothing came, he opened his eyes cautiously. Luigi was curled into a fetal position on his bed, back to the door Mario had just came in. Mario closed the door quietly, and crossed the room to sit on the bed. He placed a hand on Luigi's hip, moving him gently.

"You gonna turn over here?"

"No." A thick, curt response, and Luigi continued crying. He wasn't even trying to hide it now, his breathing hitched and laced with hiccups. Mario frowned sadly. Was there any worse sound in the world, than having to hear a person that you love so unhappy?

"Luigi... please. Talk to me." Mario begged, feeling helpless. Who or what had hurt him so bad?

"I can't..." Luigi trembled, lifting a fist toward Mario. At first, Mario had a crazy thought- maybe Luigi was going to strike him. Instead, Luigi's hand opened, and a crumpled piece of paper fell from it.

"Just read it. I'm too embarrassed to talk about it."

Mario picked it up, scanning each cruel word on the paper. Reading that was as painful as being on the losing end of a fist fight. Daisy?! Daisy of all people had written this about Luigi? Oh, no... Mario let the letter drift to the floor, and he then looked to his brothers head, buried in his hands. He tilted his brothers face towards his, and adapted a stern look.

"Luigi... did Daisy actually give this to you?"

"No..." He sniffled, eyes red and still pouring out dejection.

"Then... how do you know it was her?"

"Because..." Luigi moaned, tugging damp curls away from his eyes. "I know her writing as much if not better than my own. I always write notes with Daisy... I also know she's the only person in this whole kingdom who owns a pen that smells like her own garden. All wild flowers. It can't be anyone else, Mario. That's _her _pen. It's _her _writing... and she can't stand me."

"I don't understand, Daisy has always been so sweet to you, she's always been so interested in everything you do. Remember that time you held the school play? She took the lead girl when you asked, she hates acting-"

"I don't know why, Mario!" Luigi barked, heaving out a heavy, sharp breath. "The point is, regardless of _all _the evidence in the past which points toward her liking me... this demolishes all of it. There's no point in telling me she liked me then, if she doesn't now. Oh my God... she sent Bowser to the café with it... I wanted to die."

Mario felt very angry. Bowser? Why BOWSER? What the hell was going on? Was this some kind of pathetic, mean spirited joke? And what happened to Peach?

"Hey, why did this whole Daisy thing go on? I thought you were meeting Peach!"

"Peach- she set it up. She set Daisy up on a blind date with me. I don't know where that came from, I don't. I don't know where any of this came from!"

"Stay here, I'll be back soon."

"What are you doing?!"

"Luigi, I'll be back soon." With that, Mario got up swiftly, grabbed the letter and left Luigi's room. Moments later, the front door opened and slammed. Luigi would have followed, had he not been too humiliated to step outdoors. Instead he just groaned, rolling over and playing the letter back in his head, over and over...

—

"Mario!" Peach blushed, never having the pleasure of him visiting her at home before. "Come in! What brings you here?"

"Your jerk of a best friend, that's what. Peach, why would you set Daisy up on a date with Luigi if she didn't like him? Do you find that sort of thing funny or something?"

Peach was taken aback by the furious glare Mario was giving her. She'd never seen such a mean, upset look on his face before, and it made her terribly unhappy- she knew something was definitely not right.

"What on earth? I wouldn't! Daisy is nuts about him-"

"Then explain this!" Mario hissed, pressing the crumpled letter into Peach's gloved hands. It only took her a few short moments to read it, and she drew in a sharp breath of disturbance.

"Oh my goodness... what in God's name is wrong with that girl?! I don't understand Mario, she'd told me _just _moments before I came over to the both of you that she really liked him!"

"Well, apparently she changed her mind between then and now."

"But that's so- Ugh! I'm going to call her again. _Right _now!" She barked, storming over to her phone and dialing quickly. If Daisy didn't go, she'd obviously been avoiding her phone calls... Mario leaned against a wall, fiddling with his hair, wondering if Luigi had calmed down at all.

"Can you let me go to sleep tonight?!" Came the shrill yell that Peach far from expected. Daisy sounded very distressed.

"What? Daisy, why haven't you been picking up your phone?"

"What's your first hint, Peach? I DON'T want to TALK to you!"

"But why?! What did I do? I thought you _liked _Luigi!"

"I _hate_ Luigi! And I hate _you _even more! Now kindly forget my number and leave me alone." Click. Peach was beyond stunned, and felt her eyes beginning to well up. Her and Daisy had been best friends for so long. What could have turned her into such a jerk so fast? Mario approached Peach, and felt very guilty for yelling at her earlier when he noticed the tears in her eyes.

"Oh, come on now Peach, don't cry..." Mario frowned, and caught a tear that found its way to her cheek. "What did she say to you?" He asked, rubbing her shoulder.

"She... she told me she _hated _Luigi... then she told me she hated me more. She asked me to forget her number... I don't understand what I did..." Peach sniffled, and to her embarrassment, the tears spilled over her cheeks. It bothered Mario deeply to see her this way. Perhaps he cared for her more than he assumed, but either way, he'd try his best to cheer her up. He promptly pulled her into a hug, where her face found his shoulder, and he caressed her golden curls. She smelled lovely, and he appreciated how daintily she fit into his arms.

"Listen, Peach. Something strange Luigi told me makes me a bit suspicious. Luigi told me that Bowser gave him that note. He must've gone to visit Daisy..."

"What?! Bowser? He's harmless! A bit jealous, I'll admit, but he's never seemed anything more than annoying... why, do you think he's got something to do with it?" She asked from the crook of his neck, lashes still damp.

"I think he's got everything to do with it. And I'll go take a visit to see him _and _Daisy, once I go home and see how Luigi is doing. Just- try not to get too upset, ok? I bet it's all just a big misunderstanding. I'll be right back once I figure out what's going on with Daisy. No crying while I'm gone, ok? " Mario smiled, lifting her head to dry her face. Peach smiled to herself as he began to make his way off. She really wouldn't have any reservations about dating him- she hoped it was only a matter of time before he stopped being shy and decided to ask her... but what if he never did? What if he was too clueless to realize how she felt? Or worse, what if he was too caught up in taking care of his brother to consider it?  
Hmmm...  
Oh well.  
This wasn't how she pictured bagging her first boyfriend, but she'd rather have Mario than anyone.

"Mario?" She said quickly, seeing he was nearly out the door. He paused, glancing back in a touch of confusion. He was caught off guard when Peach reached him, and kissed him full on the lips when she was close enough to manage. It lasted long enough for Mario to have about a billion panicked thoughts about what on earth was going on, and then she drew back, to his dismay.

"Please, do see how Luigi is doing- but come back, ok? I'd love to talk to you about something..." She smiled shyly, and Mario thought she was just precious. What a miracle worker she was, at captivating someone.

"Sure." Mario beamed, feeling quite optimistic about coming back there. "Um, I'll be back soon, ok?"

"Ok. See you, Mario." Peach grinned, quite bashful, but very proud of herself as she slipped back in through the door. Thanks to her, things seemed to be moving in the direction that she wanted, and hopefully they would for Luigi and Daisy, once all this got settled away... they could all even go on double dates, picnics, everything. Peach went up to her room to daydream about later and finally getting to tell Mario how she felt, about becoming friends with Daisy again, about how cute it would be to see her with Luigi... once everything returned to normal.

But it never did.

Because when Mario got home, Luigi had packed his things in a bitter act of resentment.

"This stupid town can have their laughing fits and teen drama." He grumbled, turning to his brother. "Mario, I'm not going back to school. Frig it. I know what I want to be, and if you want to come with me, you can. I won't make you..."

"You can't make me anyway." Mario laughed, shaking his head at his enraged littler brother. Luigi cocked an eyebrow.

"I'm moving, Mario. You know what I want to do. And I know you want to do this just as bad as me. I thought maybe I might be able to have a normal life, you know, one that doesn't have 'thwarting of evil doers' or 'defender of all things good' on the resume, but hey. At least having powers has never made me feel as pathetic as that did. Girls are too complicated. At least this is something I know I'm good at." He slammed his suitcase shut, zipping it firmly. Mario's heart sank. He didn't want to move. He didn't want to be a super hero. He just wanted to stay here where everything was safe, and hopefully get back to Peach's, and start a dream he'd been keeping alive longer than any other... _anything but leaving, please! She just got up the nerve to kiss me, who knows how long she'd wanted to, she wouldn't have done that for nothing..._

"Luigi, don't you think you're being a bit harsh? It was one girl-"

"Mario?" Luigi cut in, shoulders tense and hunched as his tall frame hovered over the suitcase.

"What?"

"You mean to tell me if tomorrow, Peach declared that she hated your freaking guts, and embarrassed you in front of just about everyone you knew... you'd think to yourself 'oh well... one down, tons to go?' Because I don't think you would."

It was true. The idea was horrific to Mario, and the thought of her saying such terrible things really hit home, and stung deeply. He felt stupid for even saying that.

"She wasn't just some girl, Mario." Luigi muttered. "She was _the _girl." He stated, embarrassed to say that, but it's not like he never believed it. "Anyway, was. I'm off. I'll write, ok? See ya bro..."

"Wait!" Mario barked, grabbing his little brothers arm. he hated himself for this already... "Luigi, please, don't go."

"Mario, I'm not staying here."

"I know you're not, just- wait. I'm coming with you, ok?" Mario insisted, and before he could regret saying it, he began rushing to his room. He couldn't let his brother go out alone- if anything happened to him, he wouldn't forgive himself. And although this was really, REALLY doing him some damage- he had his chance with Peach now, and this was blatantly throwing it out the window- he couldn't risk living the life he wanted. He'd keep what had happened between him and Peach to himself. Because if he didn't join him, Luigi would always be out there somewhere alone, and Mario would always wonder if he was ok, if he was hurt, or dead...

He knew Luigi wouldn't write. If he did, eventually, Mario would find him through it.  
Even though Mario despised the idea, since he was a child, he knew this was inevitable. Him and his brother had something special, and they were doomed to accept it.  
Luigi followed after him, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Um, Mario...you really don't have to go, I mean I know you love it here, and Peach-"

"Forget about here. Forget about Peach. Duty calls, right? Like I always knew it would..." Mario smiles weakly at this, bitterness stitched into every inch of it, and without another word, he disappeared into his room. Luigi's guilt was immense. Was this all about himself? Was Mario just doing him another favor?

"Mario?" Luigi hopped back as Mario came back through the room, a suitcase stacked full of stuff.

"Come on, Luigi. We'll come back for more later. We need to find a new place to live..."

"Mario, wait- I-I don't know about this, I never expected you to-"

"What, so you expected me to talk you out of this? You figured I could make this place look better to you? Well I can't. And you're right. And Luigi, this is something we've always had to do. It's inevitable. Ok? That's that. We weren't given these abilities just to show off and impress girls. We have them for a reason. I just dreaded the day you felt the same. Now... please, before I lose my nerve..."

"Mario..."

"Come on, Luigi. If you regret this after badgering me into it, I'll actually slap you." And Mario took his younger brother by the arm, dragging him off into the night, and into a new, frightening, adventure packed life...  
One he didn't want.

—

"Mario?" Luigi called, and Mario felt dread. Oh, great. The last thing he needed was his younger brother catching him crying...

"Oh, Mario, I'm sorry..." Luigi frowned, discovering Mario wiping at his eyes. He slowly entered the room, coming to sit on the bed.

"Don't, I'm not a baby, Luigi..." Mario snapped, wiping his face roughly with a newly gloved hand. The uniforms just sort of happened... it started as a joke on a drunken night off, keeping the pipes clean in the mushroom kingdom, where Peach's father ruled...and it kind of stuck. Luigi grabbed the hand down and looked sternly at his brother.

"I don't treat you like a baby, Mario. I just worry. Alright? Why are you so irritable? I told you, you didn't have to come here, and I know what she means to you..."

"You don't know the half of it, Luigi..." Mario snarled, tugging back from him younger brother. Luigi adapted a very cross look.

"Mario... if I found out that someone had _kidnaped _Daisy, and murdered _any _members of her family, I think I'd have a tear or two to shed over it. Ok?"

"WHAT?!" Mario roared, jumping to his feet frantically. "What in God's name are you getting on with, Luigi?! Why did you just say that horrible thing?!" Luigi turned exceptionally pale, backing up from his brother a bit.

"I thought that's why you were crying when I came in, I thought you'd found out before I could tell you..."

"Tell me what?!"

"EXACTLY WHAT I JUST SAID, MARIO! Peach's mother has been killed! And Peach has been kidnaped! Now are you going to sit here and fight with me all day, or are you going to do something about it?!" Luigi's patience had run into a thin line, and Mario felt guilty for testing it. He never meant to be such a jerk, it really wasn't Luigi's fault that he never got to go out with Peach... and now she was kidnaped, perhaps hurt, God forbid she was...

"Come on, Luigi. Duty calls."

End Flashback

-----

_Ah, and now I feel sad for MARIO. Why do I make myself sad... LOL  
Anyway, hope everyone liked! See you next chapter ;)_


	6. Runaways and Halfwits

_Hey everyone! Back vith yet anotheer update. :) Wow, I'm happy with how well this is coming together for me. Anyway here it is folkes, and if it tickles your fancy, please R&R Enjoy!_

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Understudied Understudies

****

Luigi had been silent for far too long, and his eyes were misted over with the remembrance of it all. That had been the very first massive adventure for the Mario Bros. The gaming world had turned it into a fun, colorful whirlwind, but Luigi remembered it as the dark, horrifying journey that it was. He knew about all the scars and burn marks Mario now had on his back from the one adventure alone. That was what sky-rocketed Mario into the spotlight, and began his long winding career of never ending fame. Because unlike Luigi, if the enemies had him surrounded, he plowed through, teeth grit, skin singed, blood split. Because he was beyond determined to survive and persevere. Because if he didn't, Peach wouldn't. Mario knew he was Peach's last lifeline, and that's what kept his adrenaline pumping, his determination unfaltering. And though Luigi was always there for assistance and backup, the adventure never affected him as much as it did Mario. Because the love of _his _life was never at the end of it... no, she was probably sitting somewhere safe in her palace, married to another man, forgetting the young man she'd crushed and beaten to the bottom of the barrel so many years ago, forever scarring his self confidence, self worth, and trust in the opposite sex.

And here she was again, hitting on him, because he was famous.

How low.

"Daisy, it really has been a pleasure seeing you again, but I don't have much to say to you. Nothing that you'd like, anyway."

"Well the least you can do is just talk to me, after being so horrible to me, Luigi!" She barked, eyes mere slits of frustration. She felt herself welling up already, and she wondered how a man she'd known nearly ten years ago could still affect her in this way. Had she ever moved on? Luigi looked bewildered, mouth dropping open in astonishment. He then released a bark of loud, sarcastic laughter.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I deter _you _from the dating world from that day on, leaving you in a pool of lack-luster confidence, and non-existent self worth?!"

"Yes." She spat, teeth grit against any emotion but anger. Luigi furrowed his brows.

"Well that's odd, because I don't recall writing _you _an unreasonably hateful letter, giving it to _BOWSER _to read out to you, and humiliating you in front of every person in the whole freakin' town!"

"Luigi... I didn't mean it to happen that way, you both just- you guys really hurt me. You don't understand-"

"No _you _don't understand, Daisy! I really like you, ok?! I even- Jeez, I-" Luigi heaved out a heated sigh. "Nevermind. You don't give a damn."

"I _do _give a damn!!! You just think I don't! You were always _so _sure about-"

"I _LOVED _you, Daisy, ok?! I was in love with you! And you don't know what that's like, to have someone do something that horrible to you, when you're in love with them. Do you know why I'm sure you don't know? Because I don't know a single soul _you _could love as much as I loved you, and I also don't know a single soul who would do _anything _as awful as you did! Now that we've relieved the high school skeletons in our closets, may I _please _retreat into some dark, lonely corner of this forest, and _enjoy _being alone?!" Luigi snarled, and turned sharply from the stunned brunette. "_Thanks _for the sunny recap, hun." Luigi grumbled sarcastically, and began to storm off into the woods.

"_LUIGI!!!"_

—

"D-did you hear that?!" Waluigi stammered, and sucking in a huge gasping breath as Wario released him from a choke hold. Wario stood up, eyebrows perched in curiosity.

"Sounded like some chick screamin' Luigi." He stated the obvious, frowning. Then he smiled evilly. "Well either Luigi just died, or he's finally learned how to score a woman-"

"UGH! Ew! You're disgusting!" Waluigi screamed, pounding the top of his head furiously. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!"

"Whatever. You're just jealous she got there first."

"Oh, EGHK...I think I just threw up a little... can you KINDLY shut up?!"

"Why? Embarrassed because I figured you out?"

"If you keep talking like a dirtbag... I'll call mom and tell her what you said."

Wario adapted an expression of fear at this. He smiled broadly.

"Of course I'm just kidding with you, bro! I mean, you could score whatever chick you wanted- Y-You know I don't think you enjoy men...or consider you a pathetic, dateless worm..."

"Aaaand it's time for you to stop talking. Come on, I heard it coming from over here..."

"Whatever you say, bro! You're the boss! You call the shots, as long as you don't get mother involved in anything... especially involved in me being a potty mouth..."

"By all means, please catch laryngitis immediately..."

"There he is! WOAH!" Wario barked, and Waluigi clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Keep this fat hole shut!"

"Wait, lemme up! Who's that cute girl Luigi is talking to?! Why's she talking to Luigi?!"

"Because he's not a wide haul, like you-"

"Well we can't just sit here and watch them- I'll go try and find Mario, ok? Keep an eye on these two, don't let them out of your sight!"

"But Wario, what if they're involved?!"

"'But Wario, what if they're involved?!'" Wario mocked in a girly voice, laughing wildly when he finished. Waluigi sneered nastily.

"Well?! It's not polite, in fact, I could get arrested if they-"

"TOUGH LUCK! You stay!" Wario guffawed, racing off into the darkness of the trees. Waluigi slumped down into a bush, back to the two, quite grumpy.

"Aw this is just _great..._" He snapped, and jumped when out of the corner of his eye, the girl slumped to the ground abruptly.

—

When Luigi looked back, startled by the desperate, panicked scream that Daisy let out, he was frightened to find her now on the ground, on her knees, long auburn curls lapping at the filthy forest ground. He didn't know what was wrong with her, but he really cared about it- something he couldn't shake off even if he tried. He rushed to her side, worried she might be hurt.

"Daisy? Did you hurt yourself? Why did you-"

"Don't go, please." She begged, and to Luigi's surprise, she threw herself into his arms, sobbing harshly. "You- you don't know what it was like- what it's been like, since you left. You don't know, Luigi..."

Waluigi blushed to himself. Wow, this was awkward. Did he just call that girl Daisy? As in Princess Daisy? Jeez, it had been a while since he'd heard of her. She'd quite simply disappeared after high school- many people despised her, and she became quite the loner after the Mario Bros left. Even more of a loner than he _himself_ was in high school, and that's saying something. People blamed her for the abrupt, stinging leave of the Mario Bros, her letter being the site for peoples anger and backlash at her. People were always so nasty to her, she didn't even stay at grad...

"Daisy... I'm- this is really- oh, my..." Luigi sighed, exasperated. As much as he didn't want to stay, and cater to a person that had caused him so much grief, he supposed he could hear her out to an extent... "Please, tell me why you're so upset. If you hate me, why are you so distressed?"

"I don't!" She insisted, still sniffling into the collar of Luigi's green collar shirt. "I didn't! I lied!"

"What?! Why- what on earth possessed you to- ok, listen. Maybe we should just stop talking about this right now, ok? How about we focus on something else?"

"But Luigi, you don't understand!"

"I know I don't understand, and right now isn't the time for me to try. Because I don't trust you, Daisy. I'm sorry, but I don't. Now are you lost or something? Do you need help finding your way back home?"

"No!" She snapped. "I'm not going back there. I'm not lost at all. I left."

"Why would you leave your own kingdom?! They need you!"

"They don't. I'm the princess of a kingdom, both of my parents are fine, I don't partially rule anything, like Peach. They don't need me there..."

"Daisy, I'm sure they'd beg to differ!" Luigi insisted, confused as to what reason a Princess would have to leave home.

"Well, I don't. Because I'm tired of being compared to Princess Toadstool, and I'm tired of having to live up to expectations of becoming the next her. I just- I don't want to be a princess. I don't want to sit around in a castle, paying people to protect me, doing nothing, being alone. I left because I want to _live._ I just... I never expected it to be so lonely out here, as well. I feel so pathetic... I don't know where I am, Luigi. You're the first _anything _I've seen for days that I recognize...please don't leave me here. I'm so- I can't..." she looked down at the ground, cheeks flaming crimson. "I'm scared. I don't want to be alone." She whispered, and it hurt Luigi to here her so desperate. Though he didn't trust her within an ounce of his life, he certainly couldn't just leave her here in this woods- this strange and dangerous place- all by herself like this. He wasn't a hero for nothing.

"Well, I know how that feels, don't worry..." He sighed. "I left home, too. I left Mario at home and took off. I didn't want to deal with being in his shadow anymore. I didn't want to be second place again. I just wanted a break, from everything. God knows how he's doing right now..." Luigi frowned, heart sinking at the idea. Right now he was beginning to regret leaving Mario on his own again... but then, who would have found Daisy here if he hadn't stumbled upon her? She'd still be out here by herself, terrified...

"Well... I know it doesn't sound that great coming from me, but um... I never thought you were second best. In fact I always preferred you, and not just to your brother..." Daisy admitted, and Luigi opened his mouth and closed it, a bashful blush creeping along his face.

"Oh, um- a-anyway, we should probably get going, you must be starving..." Luigi stammered, rubbing the back of his neck shyly as he stood up, tugging Daisy with him. She smiled to herself, knowing she'd pleased him.

"I'm going to be sick." Waluigi complained, after hearing the mushy exchange from the grinning bush he was hiding in. He began to panic as he watched the two of them walking off into the black unknown of the forest. "Where is that large dufus of a brother I drag around, anyway?!" He hissed, forced to follow the two through the darkness.

"Have some respect and **_BATHE _**before hopping in an inanimate object next time, jerk."

Waluigi's eyes enlarged in shock, and he glanced back at the very disgruntled bush he'd just been hiding in.

"Hmmpf. Stupid bush. Bet it wouldn't be such a smart mouth if it was running from a fat brother all day, wherever the heck he is..."

—

"Oh, crap." Wario frowned. "Or was that the tree I passed? Or that one? Bah. I knew I should've dropped peanuts or something..." And as he continued to try to find his way back to his brother, having given up on finding Mario, he walked in yet another circle, for the seventh time that evening, successfully getting everywhere but somewhere useful.

Yup. So much for finding Mario, who was smart enough to be leaving ties along the trees as himself and Yoshi covered grounds on the forest of Illusion in a much more organized fashion. Mario had been in such a rush, he hadn't bothered to organize a search party. What good would that do? Luigi didn't _want _to be found. If anyone could successfully find Luigi, it would be Mario. He was the only person Luigi would most likely spare time for, with the attitude he was carrying around now. If only Mario could just stumble upon him quietly... hopefully, Luigi hadn't found out that he was being sought after by his older brother. Things would definitely take a turn for the utmost worse then; Luigi would more than likely find a way to avoid his brother at all costs if he was aware of his location. And although completely wrapped up in a firm case of worry and someways fear, he was getting farther than Wario.

"Don't worry, Yoshi. We can rest briefly in a moment, once we get out of this thicket... mama mia, it's getting cold out here." His back tensed with a shiver of paranoia. "Not to mention dark..."

Sadly, it seemed Mario's efforts would soon be brought to an abrupt halt, unlike many of his missions. This time around, things were different. He wasn't prepared for this eventuality, this unexpected falter, because it was by no means the act of anything he could control. However, this said nothing about how much he dreaded it becoming a reality...

---

_Yeah, I know I'm evil.  
And is it creepy that I'm getting way too much of a kick out of writing Waluigi?  
OO Where's everyone going? --  
See you next time all!_


	7. Family Feuds, Wario's Events

**Hey everyone!Hope everyone is still enjoying this, I'm going to be doing lots of updating now- I took some time off to write a pretty large chunk of this;) Expect more tomorrow, hopefully! Have fun reading!**

**-----**

****

**Understudied Understudies**

"Get down!" Luigi exclaimed, tugging Daisy down behind a bush. Instinctively, upon the demand, Waluigi plunged to the forest floor, expecting something major. He'd never been on an adventure before. Was it an army of goombahs?! Did they have to sneak through a garden of piranha plants?! BOWSER?! He tried to avoid shaking the bush he was under.

"What, what is it?! Is something bad coming?"

"No, worse- I hear Yoshi."

Daisy looked at him incredulously, brows furrowed.

"Luigi! He could help us out of here! Besides, I'd love to meet Yoshi!" She declared, hopping to her feet instantly. He dragged her back down before she even made it to her full height.

"No, you listen. My brother is _definitely_ on him. I _know _our Yoshi when I hear it!"

"Then let your brother find us! We won't starve to death that way!" She frowned, folding her arms. Luigi sighed heavily.

"Fine. Go find him. But don't expect me to join you." He finished, beginning to crawl away. He was instantly tackled to the ground.

"Luigi, don't be stupid!"

"Daisy, I _won't _GO! When you know what it's like being a shadow to someone for a lifetime, try dragging me off again. Until then, you've got no reason to tell me what I'm doing is wrong." He attempted to wriggle out from under her, but she flattened herself down stubbornly, trapping him.

"Oh no you don't, you aren't going anywhere without me!" She panicked. "What if I get lost? Or worse, what if _you _do alone?!"

"WORSE? You're the girl here!"

"Ex_cuse_ me?!" Daisy snarled, and Luigi swallowed hard. Oh, that was _not _what he meant...

"No no no, Daisy, I never meant you can't- what I _mean _is, I'm the one who's usually battling the bad guys, and, well, the girl is the one I'm usually protecting, not the other way around! I mean, I don't think...oh, never mind."

Her sour expression remained, but she kept crawling along side of him.

"Well, where are we going now, o great crusher of mushroom and turtle."

"Hey, that stuff is hard work-"

"Shh! Here he comes!" Daisy clamped a hand over Luigi's mouth, eyes fixated on an open patch of darkness. Instantly, the green dinosaur emerged from it, and Mario was heard to be lecturing him.

"Because Yoshi, Luigi _knows_ how you sound, he'll hear you if you eat something! Then we'll never find him..."

"Oh and what'll we do if we find him? Knock him out and drag him home? Mario, if he doesn't want to go you can't force him."

"No, I know. But I'm not above begging." Mario sighed, snuggling down further into the warm sweater he'd managed to grab on his race out the door. The wind was beginning to bite at his neck. God, it was getting cold out here... how could Luigi stand it?

"Because that won't be embarrassing..." Yoshi smirked, trying to keep the mood light.

Daisy felt bad for Mario when she saw him. Had she ever seen the charismatic, shorter man looking so sad in her life? Waluigi wondered the same thing as he eyed over the downtrodden plumber. He looked very lost. The only thing keeping Waluigi from helping the poor guy out -which would be easy seeing he knew where the two were hiding- was his understanding.

He could completely understand why Luigi felt the way he did. He knew Luigi probably just dreamed of having his own time for once, without a bigger name hovering over his own. And so, Waluigi stayed in place, quietly uninvolved. It was one of the nicest things he'd ever done.

Mario had now paused, looking around and hopping off of Yoshi.

"I'd yell out to him, but he might take off. What if he can see me? You know, and he's ignoring me? Do you think he'd do that?"

"No... but I didn't think he'd abandon you, either." Yoshi shook his head, frustrated. He didn't know what was more upsetting- the fact that Luigi ran away, or the fact that he had a reason to. Luigi was seething in the trees.

"I did _not _abandon him! I can't believe Yoshi just said that-"

"Did you say you were going back?" Daisy asked, looking thoughtful.

"Well...I kinda said if things worked out this way, I wouldn't..."

"For both of you, or just you?"

"Um..." a deep blush. "That would be just me."

"Yup, you abandoned him." Daisy said dully, looking back out through the trees. Luigi felt beyond guilty by now. He had to get out of here... he began quietly digging through his small bag of belongings, and pulled out a pen and a small notepad.

"Come on, Daisy." He whispered, scribbling across a sheet frantically and tearing it out. They got a fair distance away from Yoshi and Mario before Luigi peeked up over the edge of the bush. He then proceeded to fold the letter into a paper airplane, and with a moment of aiming, had it sailing toward Mario. Yoshi, seeing it nearly instantly and fearing it might plunge behind them into the darkness, darted out with his tongue to retrieve it. He then passed it up to Mario, who cringed in mild disgust.

"Ew, dinosaur drool!"

"As if it's any different from any other drool." Yoshi muttered, waiting patiently for Mario to read the mysterious note. Silently, Mario's worst fears about this trip had come true.

_I can see you, Mario! _

_Now stop being stubborn & please go back. It's not safe out here, especially for you- and you're putting Yoshi in danger. If you get either of you hurt, I promise I won't come home. Bowser might catch wind of you being out and about. _

_I'm not going to come out. _

_You can search all you like, I'll keep moving. Please, don't waste your time out here. I'll come home when I'm ready, if I'm ready. I'm sorry, and before you ask no, I'm not angry at you. _

_P.S: Begging won't work this time. I'm really, really, **really** not coming out. I'm not alone, if you're worried about that. If anything bad happens, I'll write. Please, go home, Mario. _

_Love you bro._

_-Luigi _

"UUUUGGGH!!!" Mario growled in frustration. "Luigi!" He barked. "Get out here! I'm serious, I'm angry now. Come out. GET OUT!" He snapped, and began to shake the trees around him. He looked around swiftly.

"I... I-I'll start burning bushes!" He declared, and promptly grabbed out a fire flower from his pocket.

'_Is he ruddy INSANE?!'_ Waluigi panicked, watching the plumber get near the bush he was hiding in.

"Are you _crazy?! _He could be _IN _the one you burn, genius!"

"Oh, right... well, fine! I'm still angry. And if you try to come home, I won't let you in. _That's_ how mad I'll be."

"He has a key."

"He left it!"

"He doesn't believe you...why would you come out looking for him like this if you were desperate for him to-"

"Would you shut up?! Who's side are you on here?!" Mario hissed, eyes scanning the trees again. He was starting to feel quite desperate. What was he going to do if Luigi wouldn't come home? He was _so, so _close...

"Luigi... please." His voice strained with resignation. "Luigi? Come on..." He urged desperately, rubbing a gloved hand over his tired face. "Please don't do this. Please? I'm..." Mario slumped his back against a tree, exhausted. "Luigi, I'm lonely." Mario said quietly, embarrassed but honest. "It's so quiet at home... please don't leave me alone." Mario felt a rush of shame as his bottom lip started to quiver. "It's getting dark, Luigi. Don't do this to me. I've never been alone in my life, you know that. I can't imagine- I-I don't know how to live on my own... I need you." Mario barely got the last sentence out as his tears constricted his throat. He swallowed them down once more. He was humiliated, but he had more to say. Every ounce of credibility he had was probably gone now, but he didn't care.

"Don't you need me anymore? Do I deserve this for what other people say? Luigi, it isn't fair..." Mario's voice wavered, and although he tried to fight against it, he began to cry. "Fine, stay in the stupid woods and be stubborn. I brought this. I know you can't cook for shit." Mario spat, throwing a large container wrapped in a brown bag down onto the ground, then proceeded to wipe at his eyes.

"Ugh. You can be so _stupid _sometimes, Luigi! This is a hundred times worse than that time you made the tree house- anyway, now that I've completely embarrassed myself, I'm going home. Happy?" Silence again, and Mario sighed heavily. "Maybe I'll stop by Bowsers for a visit, see if he wants to come over for supper. How would you like that?!"

Luigi felt a wave of panic on top of the crushing hurt he was already feeling. Mario was really doing a number on him. He was ready to stand, but Daisy quickly grabbed him by his arms, holding him in place.

"Luigi, don't. He's not _that_ dumb."

"He can be, if he's upset!"

"Luigi, he wouldn't! And this isn't about Mario, remember?"

Mario was standing there in the dark, a stunned expression on his face. Even that hadn't wavered his brother to come out.

"Jeez, Luigi... you must be really pissed." He cleared his throat, attempting to shake out the last trace of tears from within it unsuccessfully.

"Uh, well- anyway... I guess I'll leave you alone then, huh. Ah, I-I'm heading home. Sorry for throwing your lasagna, it's still good I guess, just a little mangled. I figured I could lure you out with it but you might as well have it if Bowser won't get you out. I'm sorry for bugging you." Mario sniffled again, sliding back onto Yoshi, filled with misery. "I just want you to come home."

Luigi sat curled silently into himself, lip held tightly between his teeth, resisting tears. Mario would definitely find him if he didn't hold his breath.

"Come on, Yoshi." Mario said, just above a whisper, and the young dinosaur felt horrible. What could he do to cheer Mario up? What could anyone do? Why wasn't Luigi coming out? Couldn't he see what a mess Mario was in already? It was like he wasn't even Mario. Even thought it had just been a day, Yoshi knew Mario wasn't upset that Luigi was gone. He was so upset because Luigi intended to _stay _gone. And if he couldn't convince him otherwise, he _would _follow through with his plan...

"Uhm, Mario, maybe he's going to come out. I mean he can't keep away from that lasagna forever..." Yoshi encouraged, wishing to do anything but bring Mario home defeated.

"No..." Mario began slowly, shaking his head. "No, he's not coming. He wants to be left alone. Come on... it's getting really cold." Mario shivered, then promptly removed his sweater. It made no sense to Yoshi, claiming it was cold and then taking off his sweater. But he fully understood when he watched as Mario folded it quickly, and laid it close to the bag of lasagna.

"You'd better put that on. Dummy. Now you won't freeze your stubborn green butt off. You left the house without even thinking of bringing one..." A dejected huff. "Anyway. Bye, Luigi. I hope you come home." Mario hopped back on Yoshi, shaking furiously, but at least a little cheered knowing that Luigi wouldn't starve, or freeze to death thanks to him. Once Luigi was certain that Mario and Yoshi were far off, he buried his face in his knees, erupting into bitter tears. He felt like the biggest jerk in the world. But how could he go back so soon, never learning what it was like to be on his own? Daisy turned to him, filled with feelings of immense sorrow of her own, and promptly folded the green clad plumber into her arms. She slid the green cap off of his crown of unruly curls, petting them in an act of comfort. She couldn't understand this situation- but she tried her best, knowing the two had only each other to lean on, almost since birth. Daisy knew little of their parents, only that they'd left for a mission very long ago when the boys were very young, and had never returned. She knew that after that point, all the two had was each other, in a world that had treated them very unfairly.

"Don't be upset at yourself, Luigi. You're doing something for you. There isn't anything wrong with that..."

"But I'm hurting him so bad. I don't want to hurt him...I'm all he has."

"What about Peach?"

"She's got a kingdom to run, Mario has a world to protect... she can't possibly help him with that. I'm supposed to look out for him. What if something happens?"

"Mario is a big boy. I'm sure he can take care of himself." Daisy insisted, tilting Luigi's head up to meet his eyes firmly. "Luigi... you are your own responsibility. This is _your _time now... ok? And I'm sure you're brother will soon grow to understand that this isn't anything against him, it's just something you needed to do. Don't go beating yourself up..."

"I just feel so horrible..." Luigi sniffled, and it really did do something to Daisy, seeing Luigi's eyes welling up and pouring a silver stream of sorrow down his toned cheeks. There was something about him that always made her _feel_, and feel so strongly. And she had met no one before or after him who did the same. She embraced him again, allowing him to relax into her arms.

"Shh... don't torment yourself. Wait here, ok? I'll go and get the things he left for you..." Daisy rose from their hiding spot, and moved into the small clearing, gathering the items. Waluigi perked up from where he was hiding. He could hear Luigi crying, and Daisy soothing him. He was so embarrassed to be in on all this, but it was also doing something to him. It was making him realize something. It was making him realize that there were other people in this world who felt the things he felt, and had been through the things he had. He... he hated to admit it, but he'd now found something that connected him to another person. And as fate would have it, that person was Luigi. All this talk of brothers and sticking together was giving him knots in his stomach himself. Where was Wario? Was he ok? Sure, he thought Wario was a true dork, but he still loved the crap out of him. He brooded silently to himself, fussing about every scenario Wario could have gotten into. And there was something about his failure to return _or _to find Mario that was really bothering him. Something had to be wrong. But what could he do? Should he go talk to Luigi, maybe ask for his help? Would Luigi just give him the cold shoulder after the way Waluigi treated him? Either way, even if it was just him being trapped in the forest of Illusion too long, his intuition was telling him that his brother really wasn't that stupid. There was no way he could get lost for so long...

And little did Waluigi know this for sure, but he was 100 right.

His brother had found his way out of the forest of Illusion, getting onto a path that cut through it to the Mushroom Kingdom. He had hoped to get there before dark, perhaps meet Mario at his house. But that wasn't meant to happen. Instead, he met with a pair of eerily glowing, scarlet tinted eyes, and they were the last thing he remembered seeing before everything went black...

----

_Ah, this is intense OO  
So, what did everyone think? R&R if you're pleased See you tomorrow, most likely!_


	8. Strange Selflessness, A Sleepover

Hey everyone! Back with another chapter, this one is one of my personal favorites, because it includes one of my favorite characters lengthily, finally. R&R, I hope you all enjoy!

_-----_

**Understudied Understudies**

Princess Peach was pacing in her room again. It had been nearly two weeks since she had heard from Mario. And although she knew Mario and his brother were perfectly capable of protecting themselves, she couldn't be positive they were safe. She huffed out a breath of frustration, feeling as though she had to hit something as she thought on it.

She could never be sure _anyone _she cared about was safe, ever.

No thanks to that evil, horrible scaly monster.

Bowser.

She released a small growl of rage and promptly lifted a pretty, bejeweled butterfly statue that sat on her night table. She felt satisfaction as she threw it quickly against the wall, and watched it explode in a glittering firework along her floor. That felt better. She regretted losing it, but there were plenty where that came from. She felt she was entitled to do what she liked with anything she made. If Mario knew she'd broken another one of her ornaments, he would've been very cross. He always appreciated her work.

He always appreciated her.

She sat on her bed, eyes beginning to glitter with droplets of sorrow. She was so frustrated. She had tried several times to make leave to Mario's, just to make sure he was ok. She wasn't allowed to make any calls out, the toads feared that trouble was afoot lately, and were scared Bowser might find her that way.

****

Bowser.

He ruined EVERYTHING!

She stood furiously, shaking with rage, wiping her eyes with a rough, careless movement.

"This is stupid. I'll do what I like. I don't give a damn anymore." She muttered, finally saying something to release some tension again. She began sneaking her way out to her balcony. _If anything has happened to Mario, it's my fault. Bowser is always after me, and trying to find a way to get to me..._

"If he's done anything to Mario...I'll kill him." She spat, and with that, began to shimmy down the balcony wall. She was prepared for the long 20 foot drop from the balcony bottom to the ground. She tensed, let go, and tried to relax as she fell, tugging out her umbrella. She opened it, felt it jerk her upwards slightly, then drifted herself into a nearby bush. Now that the easy part was over, she'd start her walk to Mario's. Goosebumps raised along her arms, and shivers traveled down her back. Her nightclothes didn't provide much warmth in the chill night air, but she didn't care.

All she cared about now was whatever distance lay between her and Mario's home, between Mario and his safety...

—

"Are you cold?" Luigi asked hesitantly, noticing how the auburn haired girl shook slightly. She was trying to hide it.

"I'm..." She began, attempting to steady her voice. "I'm f-fine." Her voice faltered, revealing how hard she was shivering.

"Daisy!" Luigi growled, tugging off the sweater and wrapping it around her. "What is wrong with you?" He asked, looking sternly at her. "If you need it, take it." He said sharply. Daisy felt opposition to this. She was with him because she didn't want to be away from him, knowing he was roaming around alone somewhere. What if something happened? She wasn't out here with him because she was defenseless. She was far from it.

"Luigi, I can take care of myself, you know..."

"Which is why you're with me, and staying with me, as opposed to going off on your own..." He pointed out smugly, and she frowned at this.

"Well, I could if I wanted to." She said pompously, looking away from him. Luigi hated how it stung still, to have her give him the cold shoulder. Worse, why did she always have to make him feel so worthless? It wasn't like he treated her bad, or ever had in the past for that matter. Why did she always act like he owed her something?

"Daisy, why do you always feel it necessary to lie to me?" He asked quietly, eyes fixated on her stubborn frame. She looked back at him angrily. Had he forgotten the cruel things he'd said about her? Did he think they'd just disappeared over time? How many times had she written them over pages in her notebooks, when she was feeling terribly down or lonely...

"Would you trust someone like you? Someone who could be so hurtful and selfish?"

This took Luigi by pure surprise, and anger.

"Daisy, I was nothing but kind to you. You chose what happened back then. I would have had things a lot different between you and I, believe me. But you lied to me. You hurt me, you humiliated me, and you weren't sorry."

"No, indeed I wasn't." She snapped, looking at her feet. She cared for this guy more than anyone, but she was still so burnt by the things he'd said. Until the day he justified them, she could never be sorry._ Would rather date a Lakitu brother, huh? _

Luigi shook his head, incredulous by her random change of attitude toward him.

"I'd get you, Daisy, if you had a reason for being upset. _You _turned _me _down."

"Pfft. Why wouldn't I? The way _you_ got on. As if you were above me. I realized that I didn't want that in my life."

"What? I never acted that way, ever! And I'm the same person I was then that I am now, so why are you staying."

"Because. I'm scared you're going to end up getting yourself hurt, or worse killed."

That was too much. First he was a selfish person, apparently acting above her- and now he needed her to keep himself out of trouble? Was she kidding?

"Daisy, I have been doing this ever since I left high school-"

"Yeah, Luigi. You've done this with your brother." She stated sternly, and that was the biggest blow to his ego ever. Not only was he on this trip to prove he could make it without his brother, but the girl he cared so much about- the person he was actually starting to warm up to again- felt he was incapable. Could times get any worse than this for him? He was crushed. He was so done, it wasn't even debatable. He just wanted to be left the hell alone, by everyone. It seemed the only person who could take him seriously and trust him was himself. It was a sad, sad day to be a social person.

"Oh. I see." He said simply, and then she realized how terrible that sounded. She hadn't meant he couldn't, she'd just chosen the wrong words to put together... she just wanted to show him that she worried about him, she always worried about him, especially now that he didn't have back up... she used to watch the news every day, terrified of it bringing her bad news...

"No, Luigi, wait, I never-"

"Daisy, don't. I can't even believe I took you along with me, of all people. I should have known I couldn't trust you. I feel like an idiot for even thinking that! Just leave me alone. Ok?"

That killed to listen to, but she wasn't about to let this go so easily. She knew he couldn't truely want to be alone.

"Luigi, I didn't mean it that way at all. I just worry, ok? You never know what might happen to you, _please-_"

"Keep the sweater. Would probably protect you better than I could, couldn't it." He muttered, standing to his feet. "See you around, Daisy. Who knows, maybe you can come visit me at the hospital in intensive care, after I lose a fight to a goomba. Ok?"

"Please, I'm sorry!" She cried in desperation, but he wasn't prepared to listen. He wasn't used to a person worrying about him this way- he wasn't used to being around someone who loved him, and feared for the worse, no matter how unlikely it was. He didn't know what it was like...

"You're cruel, Daisy. Always was, always will." He stated, and on that note, promptly deserted her on the spot. A long, steady silence spread along the forest, and Daisy sat against a tree slowly, reeling from the shock of being alone. Things had been going so well. Her mind jilted with thousands of still shots, of memories and laughing and finally talking to him again over the past couple weeks. How had she managed to screw it up again? From her usual sadness to spite, she turned the tables.

No.

This was Luigi's fault. In his same old selfish fashion, he had left her with sharp words. Only this time, she'd deserved them. No, she couldn't blame Luigi. She thought on how every night he'd slip the sweater over her head, and curl against her shivering for warmth. How could she call him selfish? He always gave her more to eat from the lasagna container than even he ate, seeing how hungry she was. If he had been selfish before, he was selfless now. He saved people on a regular basis- of course he was selfless! Idiot. She _had _ruined things. Things between her & Luigi had been healing. She was starting to trust him again... why did she feel the need to lie to him? He'd been so honest to her the whole time... why couldn't she let the past go? And now it was too late. It was dark. It was so cold... he'd given her the sweater.

That was what did it. She began to cry, without repression, to nothing but trees.

"He's going to freeze to death..." She sobbed, face burying into her knees. "It gets too cold here at night... Luigi, you _idiot_. Why are you so stubborn?" She cried, thumping a fist onto the ground. _It's my fault. I shouldn't have let him leave. I could have said something to make him stay. But what? I deserved it. I am a liar. I am a jerk... he was always right. I never deserved him then, and I don't know._

But she wasn't crying to nobody. There was always someone there, watching the show, reviewing the outcomes, a silent observer... and now she was alone with him.

—

The house was very dark. The only light on was over the door, and that was a terrible sign. The Mario brothers were always up late, up to some shenanigan. It was only 8:30 in the evening, who would be in bed at that time in their household? She feared the worst...

Tap tap tap.

As she waited, her knocking went unanswered. She tried this again and when nothing happened, she felt very panicked. What was going on?

She wasn't waiting to find out.

She turned the knob cautiously, and was stunned to find the door unlocked. How very rare, and odd that was... tiptoeing into the house, the first place she headed was Mario's room. Silently making her way down the hall, she put her hand on the door to the hero's bedroom. And the sound she heard startled her. It was very silent, weak weeping. It was Mario. Without much rational thinking, she threw the bedroom door open, flicking on the light. The plumber jumped considerably, forgetting his incredible abilities, and promptly, skull met low ceiling.

"Ohh..." He groaned, falling back on the bed miserably. "Great." He grumbled. Peach rushed forward, tugging off one of her long gloves and placing it over Mario's head.

"Mario?! My goodness, you gave yourself quite a smack just then... what's the matter? What are you doing in here all alone in the dark?"

"Peach?! Oh, God..." He moaned, scrambling to wiggle under the blankets, and now appeared to be a lump beneath candy apple red sheets. She rubbed what she hoped was his back.

"Mario? You're worrying me. What's going on? Where's Luigi?"

"Luigi!" Mario yipped, and she heard him sniffling noisily from beneath the blankets. Bingo, she thought. Mario wouldn't be getting on like this for nothing. Something had happened to Luigi.

"Where is he, Mario?" Panic bubbled up in her chest again. What horrible creature or terrible fate had Luigi run into?

"Gone!" Cried the lump.

"Gone where?! Mario, get out here and make sense! Please, I came all this way to see you, I've been so worried..." She said sadly, looking at the lump as she sat on the bed. She had been. She'd spent so many nights awake, wondering... Mario felt intensely guilty now. He loved this girl- very much so, at that. And she'd risked her life, just to see if he was ok. How senseless was he, to let her worry badly enough to risk her own safety to check on him? Couldn't he have said something? Did he have any consideration? He could only imagine the panic he'd put her through, never calling, never writing... he poked his head out, rubbing the tender spot gingerly, then took her hands. He pulled her over close, sitting up to bind his arms around her securely.

"I've been such a jerk, Peach. I'm so sorry for making you worry..." He sighed, and she felt all the stress leave her, a bright blush taking its place. Him embracing her and nuzzling into the crook of her neck was more than enough payment for the scare she'd gotten from all of this...

"No, it's nothing. I'm just so glad you're ok..." She responded, returning the embrace and kissing his temple lightly. "Mario... please, explain. What happened? Is Luigi ok?"

"No, but he's in no danger. None that I know if. He, um..." Mario paused, thinking back on the event.

Stupid game.

Stupid Nintendo.

"Have you played smash bros yet, Peach?"

"Yes... oh." A bothered look gripped her features. "Oh, Mario- Tell me he didn't see what they said about him." She begged. Poor Luigi was dealt enough indignity, to have something that rude directed at him.

"Oh, he did. And, he wasn't too happy... he's left home, Peach. Apparently for good."

"Surely that's nonsense." She smiled weakly, brushing her un-gloved hand through his hair. "You two have always lived together, I doubt he'd be able to stay alone."

"Well...it's been two weeks."

"Oh, my- I can't believe that he'd-"

"I know... but he has. I guess he just doesn't need me, Peach." Mario sulked, eyes downcast at his fidgeting fingers.

"Stop it! You know he needs you, Mario! He just doesn't need that kind of backlash is all..." she huffed, shaking her head. It wasn't fair. Luigi was one of the sweetest people she had ever met- he had time for everybody, and anybody. Hell, he even picked up for Waluigi, and saved him from beatings due to his smart mouth back in high school- every single time. He was just such a thoroughly, wholly nice person. Why would anyone want to hurt him?

"He'll come back, Mario. I know he will. He needs you, just like you need him. You mean the world to Luigi, you know that! He just needs to have some Luigi time right now, I guess. And in the mean time... I hope you won't oppose to me joining you tonight? It's awfully cold out, and I'd hate to deal with the toads any time soon..." She grinned innocently, evidently proud of her excuses. Mario chuckled in amusement, definitely not opposed to having some alone time with her.

"Well, if I _have _to..." He joked, wiggling over to allow the blonde access to some bed space and pillows.

"That's right, you know the drill!" She giggled, snuggling against him. "Mmm... I'm so glad you're ok, Mario. You have no idea..." She smiled sleepily, placing a gentle kiss on his forehead. "Have a nice rest, ok?" She insisted, her face disappearing against his chest.

"You too, Peach." Mario smiled, face buried against sweet smelling locks of blonde.

Finally at bliss after many days of worry, Peach was more than happy to relax against the very upset but intact plumber, and fall into a nearly instant sleep. Mario wasn't too far behind, sparing a thought for whatever situation his younger brother might be in before falling into the most comfortable sleep he'd had since Luigi's departure. Only she could put him at such peace...

----

"Ugh! What do _you _want!" Daisy bawled, angry at being caught crying. What a time to run into this idiot...

"Shut up! You take orders from _me _now, understand?" Waluigi cackled, swiftly grabbing Daisy by the arm. "Now get up!"

"Oh, stuff it, crustache!" She snarled, firmly elbowing him in the gut. With a gasp and a quick titter of laughter, Waluigi seemed to recover almost instantly.

"You think I'm not used to getting that from the ladies? I'm near immune!" He declared proudly, and Daisy scrunched her face up in utter disgust.

"Ugh! I should have known. Get your hands _off _me, jerk face!"

"Well, no need to flatter me into it or anything." Waluigi growled, promptly grabbing Daisy's wrists and shoving them behind her back. He twisted them firmly, and Daisy gritted her teeth against the pain.

Jeez, scream already! Waluigi thought, aggravated by her resistance as he twisted with a stronger force. She was a lot tougher than most princesses he'd harassed!

"OW! You're hurting me, you idiot!"

"If you don't scream, I'll break your bloody arm!"

"What? Scream? What's the matter with you, are you a freakin'- OWWWWWWWW!! GET OFF OF ME BRUTE!!!" She howled, kicking back into his shin forcefully.

"OW! Stop fighting, you COW! Listen, I'm just trying to-"

"HELP!!! Oh my God, I'm going to get RABIES!!!" Daisy screamed, then resorted to laughter. Waluigi jerked her arm viciously. "AAH-OW!!! Oh- Waluigi, you son of a-"

"Hey, what the hell is going on here?!"

Waluigi smiled to himself in relief. He _knew _it!

_About friggin' time, dork. You never got that far... _

Luigi erupted into the scene, eyes burning with rage. He'd faintly heard it- it had been a mere distant cry, but he recognized it instantly. He knew that girl couldn't stay out of trouble without him... and what he was seeing was bringing him immense fury. How dare Waluigi treat her so roughly...

"Wow, nice of you to make another round, Luigi." Daisy yapped, wincing against the force being put on her right arm. "Now would you mind getting this _scab off of me?!_"

"Waluigi, what are you doing here?! Get off of her!" Luigi barked, charging forward at the tall, lanky man. Waluigi felt fear at the appearance of green flame between Luigi's fingers.

"Don't touch me!" Waluigi snapped, leaping back from the plumber as he shoved the disgrunted girl towards Luigi's arms. The flames extinguished nearly instantly as Luigi caught her in his grasp securely.

"I'm going, jeez!" Waluigi snorted, with Luigi gawking between Daisy and the offender. Daisy was clinging to Luigi like a floating device. It made Waluigi laugh. "You're such a dumbass, Luigi!"

"WHAT?!" Luigi managed to grab Waluigi by the back of the shirt, hauling him to meet his face. "Waluigi, what the hell are you doing here, huh? What did you want with her, anyway?"

"None of your business, _Squeegee. _Now let go!" Waluigi thrashed out of Luigi's grip, and smirked saucily as he freed himself. "Later, chump." And to the confusion of both Daisy and Luigi, Waluigi disappeared into the darkness of the trees.

"That was...easy..." Daisy mumbled, eyebrow perched high.

"What...the hell...was that." Luigi asked, sincerely baffled by the event. But he was only answered by a shortness of breath as Daisy threw her arms about him, squeezing tightly. He remained motionless for a long time, unsure in his head about things. He wasn't sure if he was willing to let go of earlier's events. He looked down and found her face buried into his filthy green shirt, small, damp droplets in hues of darker green finding their way onto his shirt from her lashes. He sighed as his arms fit around her smaller frame, and his face met auburn curls. Earlier was the past now. He hadn't wanted to leave her even after all the things she'd said regardless, and now he was wondering if he hated or loved that. Either way, this was what he really wanted, regardless of what he thought earlier. Her tears were a testimony towards mutual feelings.

Waluigi watched silently from the darkness, smirking to himself in a sense of pride.

Knew I could pull that off. Easy as all hell.

And he still couldn't figure out what possessed him to do it, why he craved to see their happiness, why he felt fulfilled in helping someone else.

It was a beautiful change, to a life of ugliness on the inside.

And he wouldn't mind getting used to this.

-----

Well that's all for now, folkes! Aww, Waluigi is being nice! 3  
In his own twisted way I guess OO  
Either way, I hope everyone liked this installment. This one was a little happier, eh?  
See you all next time!


	9. A Trick, A Dip, & A Lure

_Back again with another installment. Boy, is it fun writing this story! Thanks again for the great reviews everyone, I really appreciate them! Now, on with the show..._

_---_

**Understudied Understudies**

"I said don't talk when I'm talkin' to ya, scum!"

Wario grimaced, and braced himself as he hit the cool, unforgiving wall. His resistance was weak. His ability to defend himself was all but gone. Days upon days of endless torture was really taking its toll.

"You're pathetic. You're vermin." Wario laughed, and spat in the direction of his captor. Bowser sneered as it connected with him. He then wiped it off, smearing it along Wario's face, and laughed bitterly.

"You want to play that card? Say what you want. We've got exactly what you'd hate us to have, and we'll do what we like with it."

"Oh, really." Wario smirked, though badly hurt he was still able to be a saucy pelt. "And what meaningless object have you collected to threaten me with _this _time?" He asked, and upon that question, he heard a distant yelp of pain. The color drained from Wario's features. His eyes grew wide and lethal as they fell upon Bowser. Wario delivered hate in heavy, violent heaps with his glare. No, he couldn't have... Bowsers cackle was purely wicked. He didn't care. He knew what love did to people...

"What's the matter? Thought you'd be used to hearing your useless brother whine by now." Bowser snorted, and his glee was only magnified when Waluigi's voice carried along the corridor in a twisted scream of pain, and this was when Wario regained a burst of energy. The koopas standing beside him were knocked and sent spiraling across the room as Wario felt panic and concern for his brother.

"Bowser... what the _hell _are you doing to him?! He knows NOTHING ABOUT PEACH OR MARIO!!! Whatever you're doing to him you can _easily _double on me!!!" He roared, and grabbed the Koopa King violently.

"Get your mitts off of me!" Bowser snarled, and sent Wario sailing backwards. Waluigi could be heard weeping in pain and Bowser was enthralled at the way it drove Wario mad. The oldest of the Mario kin was now trembling with rage, and biting into his lip ferociously. The last thing he wanted to do was cry in front of this asshole.

"Bowser, I'm begging you. Please, _please_, stop- what do you _want?_ "

"That's more like it, worm." Bowser spat. "Now he'll go away without much more torture if you start speaking the hell up. The sooner you spit it out, the sooner we'll toss him back in the Forest of Illusion where we found him, like the garbage heap he is."

Wario was so worried, he was sick. Hearing his brother beaing beaten in the next room made him so bothered, he thought he was going to throw up. How could anybody be so, so twisted? He couldn't even bear the thought of what they might be doing to his baby brother... thoughts of the anger he felt whenever someone threatened Waluigi at the playground, how guilty he'd feel whenever he got Waluigi in trouble for one of his schemes...

This had to be the worst thing his brother had ever been dragged in to. Unless...

This was a long shot, but God help him if Bowser would really be such a cruel son of a bitch...

"Nice trick, Bowser. But Waluigi was hiding out in big world. Do you really think you can convince me of these things so easily?"

Bowsers eyes shifted nervously, but then a malicious leer crossed his evil features.

"TROOPS!" He boomed. "Go divide up a thorough search in Big World! I want that miserable brat here, immediately!"

Wario deflated with a small slice of joy. He found solace in Waluigi's safety. Thank God. Thank _God _he wasn't enduring the same hell _he _was...

"You're clever, Wario." Bowser snarled, getting in his face. "But you're a _snitch. _And you're no hero. Why are you hiding information about Peach, and Mario?"

"What's your beef with Mario anyway? Angry because he can bag a date and you can't?"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Bowser grasped Wario with his huge claws, and Wario winced as they bit in.

"Can I get a bingo?" Wario spat, teeth grit into a smile against the pain. Bowser dropped him roughly, turning with one swift movement.

"Fine. If I can't get an answer from you, you're useless to me. For now..." He grins seedily at this, glaring back at the disheveled man. "I have to go make a quick visit. This may be a tricker capture, but I'll find out what the hell is going on in that ruddy Mushroom Kingdom yet. I won't- I _refuse _to be left on the outside!"

"Yeah, I hope you get _WET TAIL _and scale rot on the way there, you dateless failure!" Wario snorted, his laughter following Bowser out of the hall. Now, with the King Koopa gone, Wario was safe to collapse to the ground, in terrible pain and exhausted. He'd gotten quite a scare from that Waluigi incident.

"Kamek, you're a lousy bastard. Turtle humper!" He barked loudly and crudely, as only he could, both enraged and drained. "_And_ I _hate _you!"

"Oh, have another sandwich, tubby." The eccentric wizards voice filled the room.

---

Luigi popped his head out of the cool lake, barking out a laugh as Daisy began to head for shore. She was _not _happy about the discovery of eels in the water.

"Come on, Luigi. I remember that giant one from 64, and I _don't _want to meet one in real life!" She jittered, terrified of the idea. "Luigi?" She frowned, turning back to look at his swimming around. When he caught her eye, with an evil grin, he promptly plunged under the water. "LUIGI!" She barked. "Please!"

When he didn't resurface, she became very uncomfortable. Oh, he always had to tease...

"Luigi, give it up. Quit trying to scare me!" She glared at the waters surface, barely rippling. She could swear she could _feel _a giant eel down in the depths of that water somewhere. She could just see it now, huge teeth, lengthy purple body...

"Luigi _don't_ make me come out and get you!! Oh, this is ridiculous!" She groaned, both scared out of her wits and humored. She loved his tormenting, regardless of the fact that sometimes it scared her. "There! I'm out here. I'm out, now come on! You're being-" She let out a long, loud scream and began to thrash as she felt a tight, wet object curl around both legs. She met the water immediately, kicking her legs like a mad man to free herself of the slimy hitchhiker. She could hear Luigi laughing in near tears, splashing around in his laughter. And it was then that she realized, with a panic glance down at her legs, that she was not captive to an eel. She was captive to a bunch of weeds. With an agitated snarl she ripped them apart with her hands, turning then to the hysterical Mario brother.

"Oh my God... you looked like you were ready to say your last prayer!" He coughed, and she smirked in amusement.

"No, but you better be!" She cackled, plunging forth to dunk him under. With a shout of surprise he went under, and it was her turn to start laughing like an idiot at his expressions every time he came back up.

"Daisy-"

"What's that, I can't hear you?"

"Kill you-"

"You keep bubbling off, speak clearer!"

And that's when he was abruptly missing from beneath her arms. She stared down in astonishment to find an absent Luigi.

"Luigi?" She frowned, instantly skeptical. "Luigi, come on. You think I'd buy _you _of all people drowning after all the water missions you've been on?" She laughed, checking around herself cautiously.

After a few minutes with no Luigi, she was beginning to get pretty scared.

"Ok Luigi you got me, please..." the water remained still. "Luigi? Oh, God..." She blinked, still seeing no sign of him. Was he really in trouble? Her mind reeled. _If you've gone and hurt Luigi... you're a true idiot, Daisy_! She scolded herself, then plunged under the water. She glanced around the area, adjusting to the change. She then began to swim towards the darkened, seemingly endless bottom, if it existed... and that's when out of nowhere, causing her heart to skip a few beats, was Luigi in her face, panic-stricken, grabbing her, and swimming to the surface. When they hit he began gasping, and shoving her toward the shore.

"Luigi my God, is this your idea of some kind of horrible joke?! What's the matter with you?!"

"GO! No time- go go go!" he insisted, shoving her still.

"Luigi STOP IT you're scaring me!" She cried, spinning around to face him with confrontation. To her disgruntled surprise, he grabbed her up into his arms, and literally raced with her struggling in his arms to the shore. When he finally made it there he lay her back on her feet gently, staring out at the water instead of meeting her furious gaze.

"Luigi, this is a bit much, don't you think?"

"I'm sorry, Daisy- I wasn't-" He gasped, not having much breath to spare "I was caught down there. Never meant to scare you- just got away- HUGE eel-"

"Ohhhhh, stop it now!" Daisy snorted, shaking her head. "You _are _just playing a trick on me! You're just making up a story to frighten me, as usual!"

"No, Daisy, I'm telling the truth, this time it's real-"

"So real I never even saw this enormous eel, chasing you."

"I never either until he dragged me down!"

"Alright, Luigi, you win this round."

"But Daisy I'm-"

"Jeez Luigi, I said you win. Stop with the fake eel stuff! Or I won't get in water with you ever-"

And just at that moment a massive, purple tail broke the water, propelling the owner- which of course was the gigantic eel Luigi was babbling about- back down to the depths. No snack today!

Waluigi, watching from a nearby bush, thanked God in heaven above that he hadn't been invited to _this_ pool party. It had seemed tempting until that moment! Daisy turned to Luigi, face pale and apologetic, and Luigi could only laugh at her.

"Don't bother, I know." He chuckled, petting her damp hair. She smiled weakly, still staring with slight horror out at the water. Never going swimming again...

Just at that moment, another sound broke the silence. The sound of many wings, flapping and pounding at the air. Luigi tensed and grabbed Daisy, shoving her down with him behind a bush.

"You hear that?" She muttered, looking up at the sky.

"I do. And I know exactly what that is. Koopas. Tons of them, flying somewhere..." He squinted, eyes also scanning the sky, and that's when he saw them. A thick cloud of koopas, swarming like a colorful hail in the direction of pipe world.

"They're headed to pipe world? That could lead them anywhere!" Luigi gasped, watching as they temporarily blocked the suns rays above them.

"Do you think Bowser is up to something?"

"Think? Hardly. Know? Positively." Luigi responded, keeping low as he followed after the koopa cloud. Daisy joined him reluctantly, glaring up at them. If they were anything like pigeons, she was certainly not keen about traveling beneath them... Waluigi, wondering if this may or may not have some tie to the location of his brother, followed without hesitance. At the edge of the forest, all three were ducked behind the faces of smirking bushes, watching the creatures dive into two different pipes. The biggest heap of trouble makers made their way to the pipe on the right, nearest to the ground. Luigi looked to Daisy, and she simply grinned with a shrug.

"Hey, you know this place. Pick whatever suits your fancy."

"Well wherever that large gang of koopas are going, I bet it's to back up Bowser. He wouldn't go somewhere without some major back up. And personally, I'd like to see what terror he's reaping on some innocent creatures. But I'd rather not put you in any- HEY! Daisy, you- WAIT!" Luigi barked, because on his weaker note, Daisy had took off for the low pipe, in hopes that Luigi wouldn't lose his nerve. She didn't want to be the reason that Luigi never waltzed in and kicked Bowsers ass, all by himself!

"DAISY! It could be unsafe, WAIT! Don't-" But it was too late. Giggling like a maniac, she disappeared into the green tube, and silence filled the area. Luigi stared down into it, panicking.

_If she gets herself caught by one of Bowsers idiots, she's never going to hear the end of it from me!_ And he promptly leapt in after her. Not one to be outdone or left in the dust, Waluigi leapt in as well- knowing he'd definitely be discovered by Luigi and Daisy this time, but not caring- he wanted answers about his brother and he wanted them stat. Thus, the three of them set out for God only knows what, in God only knows where...

---

Daisy sure likes setting things up for herself, doesn't she? (Lets hope she doesn't find herself in another water world...)  
R&R if you like what you read! ...and if you don't OO (gulp)  
See you next time!


	10. An Oddball Team, Bad luck gets worse

Hey everybody! Here's another installment for you- expect more soon, my work schedule isn't quite so hectic this week ;) Enjoy!

—

**Understudied Understudies**

Peach was now getting increasingly upset.

Her and Mario had spent the full week together, mostly at her castle to dampen the fact that Mario was the only one living at his house. But he was becoming increasingly distant. He'd gone from making up excuses to not go out to just plain not responding. She would go down there and try to talk some sense into him, if she knew it wouldn't upset him further. But how do you talk sense in to someone who feels they're justifiably miserable? She had no siblings, she didn't even have anyone she was that close to, except maybe the two Mario brothers. And if her concern for Mario was any testament to how she'd feel if he walked out on her, then no, she couldn't blame Mario for feeling this way. She just couldn't help but feel... neglected, if you will.

If she wasn't fearing for her life, she was having to take care of everyone else's. If he wasn't off fighting evil doers, he was watching his back for them. Now, with not only that to worry about, his baby brother- his boon companion _and _back-up, had left him alone. Was there ever going to be a day when she could actually put the world on pause, and talk to him for just a few uninterrupted moments? Mario staying at the castle meant Toadsworth keeping a very sharp eye on the both of him. He hadn't been too pleased to discover a missing Peach, later having her show up with the plumber. He also wasn't a fan of her great escape story to Mario's home with no explanation- and especially, with no permission.

It was so frustrating. Was it fair that she had to find herself in love with the one man for so, so insatiably long, and never find the means to act on it? Had she ever been able to utter the words at the right moment, if at all? She'd planned it. She had it all plotted out, years ago. She'd waited all evening, all night, thinking on the kiss she'd given him back in her castle doorway... waiting in her dining hall with a meal prepared in the wake of her exciting revelation: I love you, Mario. But 10 turned into 11, double digits went without a partner as 1, 2 & even 3 passed by her increasingly heavy eyelids. Without a partner. As it seemed she was eternally doomed to be. The meal went from a warm invitation to cool leftovers, and her heart became so laden with disappointment she never had a bite. He'd promised to come back. He never did. She never heard from him for weeks after that. She spent the majority of it sulking in her study or her shower, crying bitterly to herself because there was _evidently_ a problem with her. She knew this because she was no stranger to hearing the simple fact- be it in whispers of hopeful girls, or declarations of jealous, fed up guys. Mario was perfect. And this was her sole belief and goal in life, finding her one enormous flaw, for those few weeks.

Then the letter came.

And it wasn't her non-existent flaw that had sent him from her doorway to a new town with no reply. No, it was something inevitable.

Duty called.

Duty always called.

She heaved out a long, weary sigh. And although she meant so much to Mario, and he fought so intensely to keep her safe... she often wondered what she was being kept safe for. To stay within pink splattered walls, alone with people saying "Yes Princess, of course Princess!" for the rest of her life? What she wouldn't give to live in that quaint little house, in the second hand bed sheets, quilted lovingly by the hands of the kind of mother she never got to learn of, or receive gifts from. Her memories of her mother were scarily like her life now. Sitting on a throne, or before a mirror, too busy with subjects and issues other than her own to even glance over her shoulder. Her mother had been to busy with herself to look back and see what a lovely young lady was growing beside her, face strikingly akin to her own. But she never looked back. No matter how long Peach would wait in the doorway to show off a new pretty gown she'd received from a kind guest, or how well she'd applied her expensive makeup, after many hours of watching her own mother apply it... never had a princess been ignored so often. Peach was saddened by how familiar she was with the back of her mothers head, the last memory she even bore of her was her lovely, trailing gown flowing behind her as she went upstairs from supper, to lock herself in her own wealthy prison once more. Then, she was gone. Then Peach had to fill her doomed shoes.

And of course here she remained, upon the balcony craving fresh air, craving anything but pink and silk and glitter. She placed her cold face in trembling hands as she supported herself with the balconies edge, staring out at such a lush kingdom, wishing to be back in a room coated in welcoming red, where she could be comforting the only person who made her feel truly noticed, truly appreciated, with all the praise she got from the world. Only one person could make her really feel alive, like another person. And he was as alone as she was tonight, upset and unhappy somewhere, and unlike his amazing ability to rescue her from all things dark, she could only allow him to be imprisoned in it. And the only thing that glittered on her empty balcony was her gradually dampening cheeks, revealing years of unhappiness, silver trails of lament.

They were both alone tonight.

—

When Luigi passed through the pipe, opening his eyes and squinting against this new, harsh explosion of sunlight, he could only blink furiously and gaze around- hoping to remain alert in this temporary blindness. He saw bricks- golden bricks, a very large opening to a pipe, a question block- and a fuzzy, dim large blackness that seemed to be getting bigger and bigger and-

BAM.

"Oh my- Luigi!" The shrill voice seemed to come out of nowhere, as the world seemed to have turned into a spinning mash of blue and smiling clouds. He was certain he was going to be sick...

"OWWWW! HEY!!!" Came a familiar sneer. Ugh, but Luigi _hated _that voice! Something was on him, and he was definitely on something. Red, too much red and blue- a very pointy moustache was giving his left eye an unfriendly handshake...

_BANG!!!_

Luigi just closed his eyes as he felt himself flying through a short distance. He heard that annoying voice again, screaming... and that's when he unkindly met a stack of bricks.

"Unnnghhh..." They both groaned, and although both had come to a very abrupt stop, everything was still spinning. When Luigi finally opened his eyes, he saw about five Daisy's, looking very concerned.

"Luigi- Luigi, my gosh- are you ok? I'm so sorry, I'm such an idiot..." Four Daisy's were helping him up. "Luigi? Talk to me, are you hurt?" His head stung a bit. Three Daisy's were feeling his head and biting their lips. "God, you really hit those bricks hard. This turtle- he was coming at me, so I kicked him, but then you got right in front of the shell- you just _stood _there, I didn't have any time to do anything..."

"I-It's ok, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy..." Things were starting to go back to normal. Two Daisy's had morphed back into one, and he hugged whatever one was left, laughing. "Don't take it so serious, it was just a turtle knock back. No harm done!"

"Um..." Daisy screwed up her face, glancing over Luigi's shoulder. "I wouldn't say _that._ Look at the trash you picked up along the way!" She smirked, and Waluigi was only coming to his senses and standing as she said it. Luigi looked over and instantly tensed. Hadn't he tried to nab Daisy mere days ago?

"Waluigi, can I _ever_ shake you?" Luigi growled, shoving the taller man in a no nonsense manner.

Waluigi, unlike his typical reaction, simply adjusted his hat and didn't retaliate in the shove. This alone puzzled Luigi. Waluigi then frowned thoughtfully and folded his arms.

"Luigi, I'm not here to kidnap Daisy, as I'm sure you're convinced of."

"Like I'd _let_ you kidnap me." Daisy smirked, shaking her head. Waluigi simply smiled at her, trying to keep it from turning into a jeering smirk as well.

"Well what are you doing here _again_?"

"What do you mean again? I don't think the three of us have ever been together in this spot once before now!"

"Smart ass. You know what I mean. This is the _third _time you've gotten in my way since I've left home. What are you doing, stalking me?"

"Sort of." At the reaction this comment caused on the already agitated pairs face, Waluigi quickly followed this with "but not because I wanted to!"

"Please, explain." Luigi sighed, sitting on a toadstool where Daisy had already parked herself. Waluigi felt like he was presenting himself to a couple of judges. This was going to be lovely...

"See... when you came over that day, looking for the kid. You uh- you weren't really acting yourself."

"Yeah... well I guess I wouldn't! Would I?"

"That's the thing, I didn't-well, uhm... I found out why you were on your own." Waluigi continued, cutting to the chase, looking at Luigi with a strange shadow in his eye. Luigi didn't know where this was going. "Wario told me. He called Mario after you left..."

"What? Why on earth would he do that? Mario's my _brother, _not my dad!"

"I know! I know he isn't, but that's- it's just Wario. It's just Mario. It's a big brother thing, you know? He _told_ me he knew how Mario felt. Which I thought was strange, coming from him. He said he knew what it was like to worry..."

Again, Luigi felt a guilty twinge, and it embedded in his chest like a jagged claw. It hurt to think on his brother, back at home, cooking for one, entertaining his lonely self, deserted, worrying...

"Well, I... I felt- bad for you, Luigi." Waluigi confessed, causing Daisy to snort in laughter. _He _felt bad for _Luigi?_

"Daisy..." Luigi said in warning, finding himself surprised by the typically mean spirited man. Waluigi was now reddening.

"I know, I know, _I _don't have any reason to- I just meant- I know what it's like. I knew what it was like. I _really _do. My brother is a complete imbecile sometimes, yes. But I do love him, very much. It's just... sometimes, I can't help feeling that being born second is like winning yourself the title of second, all the time. And I figured, you know... it's just me. I'm a villain and I'm supposed to feel like garbage! It's what makes me a bad guy, I guess." Waluigi said proudly, temporarily falling back into character. "But... when I found out about you, and the fact that you felt that way as well... I guess I never expected people like you to feel things like that, with all the glory you got. _I_ was so bottom of the barrel, I never thought that you might be in the same position. I guess... I don't know, I just wanted you to know you weren't alone. Why, I don't know. I suppose it was the first time I really felt like I knew you- or even felt anywhere close to _any _person's level, outside Wario. I just wanted to find you & let you know, &..." Waluigi flushed immensely at this, looking up at the grinning clouds in the sky. He couldn't believe he was saying this. Luigi & Daisy couldn't believe he was saying this, either. "I'm sorry, Luigi. I never realized..."

To further his embarrassment, Waluigi was shocked to find the green clad man clapping him on the shoulder, and tugging him into a firm hug.

"Wh-why are you-"

"Listen, Waluigi. I owe you an apology, too. I uh- I had no idea how you felt. Bottom of the barrel? Jeez... I had no idea you even felt! I feel like a jerk..."

"Well, feeling _is _a part of being _alive, _you know..." Waluigi grumbled snarkily.

"I don't know about that." Daisy frowned, standing now to join the two men. "Bowser doesn't seem to feel too much. In fact I'd be shocked to find out that he felt anything more than greed."

"That goes for me as well! And speaking of him, I'd love to find out what he's up to. We may as well stop standing around here. Come on guys, follow this way..." Luigi ordered, walking up to the tunnel opening he'd seen earlier.

"Daisy, what had you seen, up ahead?"

"Koopas. Hundreds of them, a few goombahs. They all seem to be looking for something..."

"Well get down! They might be looking for us!" Luigi gasped, forcing them behind a small group of trees. "Daisy, keep an eye on the green Koopa over there, with the sunglasses. I've seen him before. Make sure you don't lose him. I've still got a few more questions left for Waluigi here..." With that Luigi turned back to the purple clad man, eyebrow raised. "So you've explained to me why you were trying to find me. Why are you following me?"

"You see, I haven't entirely explained why I was trying to find you. Wario wanted to find you, too. He wanted to help Mario, who was searching for you. We found you before Mario did. So he made me wait in the bushes. He told me not to let you out of my sight! He told me he'd be back, he was going to look for Mario. But... he hasn't returned since. Wario has never taken _that_ long. I mean sure he gets himself lost every now and then, but never over night. It's just strange, for him. I'm afraid something's happened to him..."

If Luigi didn't know _that _feeling good and well. He could never forget the day Mario went missing...

Just then, the sunglass-clad Koopa was approached by a hammerhead bro.

"Keep a sharp eye. He's supposed to look a lot like our source."

"Oh, I'm tired of all this monger-work. How long till the boss tracks down Mario already?"

"How am I supposed to know? That fat hog could be anywhere. Last place the boss saw him was off in the woods in the East somewhere..."

Luigi turned _very _pale. His limbs felt weak and unhinged. Mario was so vulnerable right now. Bowser was watching him? _Tracking _him? Luigi _had _to warn him somehow. But how? Apparently nobody knew exactly where he was... which was lovely. And who were they looking for? Did they know he'd left Mario alone? Oh, this could be horrible, and it would be all his fault... He felt someone stroking his back in a comforting manner. It was good to know it was Daisy, who was certain that this news had bothered Luigi and was comforting him while listening. That would have been pretty weird, coming from Waluigi.

"Well like I said. Keep a sharp eye. He _is _here. The source said he'd be here. He's hiding. Tear this place limb from limb, until there's no place left to-"

"Who's hiding? And who says you losers own the place to dirt up?" Luigi barked, standing with a coy grin. Daisy and Waluigi looked up at him in disbelief. Was he _braindead?! _

"HEY YOU! That's him, isn't it?!"

"I thought he was fatter than that!"

"No, the other captive!"

"I thought that was Mario!"

"NO! The other OTHER captive-"

And they both turned, eyes wide and bodies unprepared as four bright balls made their way toward them. They screamed as the green flame enveloped them, and appeared quite dull and displeased as it left them blackened, charred and in pain. (Koopas and Hammer Bros never seemed to represent a beacon of intelligence and battle skill, huh?) Daisy and Waluigi lunged out from their hiding place, dragging the two back to it without missing a beat. They pinned the char-broiled villains easily as Luigi edged his way to a pipe. He could tell by the way weeds protruded from the top, this had to be one... he dangled his fingers gingerly over the top, preparing for instant pain...

CHOMP!!!

He managed to withdraw his gloved fingers at break-neck speed as the enormous plant snarled, plunging up for a snack. He grabbed it firmly, wrestling the lengthy plant out of its place of inhabitants before ensnaring his burnt captives in its binds with the help of the other two. He felt horrible for uprooting the poor thing- but once Kamek got a hold of them, all they wanted to do was kill whatever came their way. It was a shame- it made him think on the piranha plant garden at home... his thoughts were interrupted by Waluigi, who was suddenly very angry, and shaking the captives.

"Well?! What are you laughing at? You wanna live, don't you?" Waluigi cackled, and for a moment it seemed he'd truly terrified the two. But then they remained smug, and defiant.

"Do what you will. Troops will be looking to check in with us any second."

"Yeah? Well how about the fact that _now that you've told us that, _we'll proceed to spring an attack on the damn troops, and kick their asses?" Daisy said casually, looking up from her nails with a mischievous grin plastered across her face.

"Because the three of you will be outnumbered." The hammer bro commented pleasantly. All three erupted into laughter at this.

"If you think I can't take on yet _another _flimsy horde of turtles and mushrooms, then you've obviously not been working in the field of 'evil villain' for too long, have you." Luigi stated with a sigh, looking upon the creature as if he felt pity for its lack of common sense. The other two were chuckling to themselves, as if the hammer bro was evidently an idiot for thinking otherwise. The hammer bro looked slightly taken aback by their unusual display of confidence. _Now, _he felt reason to be scared as a captive by these three. How did that guy know he was new? And what made them so damn cocky?

"So I sent in my resume last week! I know what I need to know. Bowser reigns supreme, and Mario needs to be crushed. And, trust me, will be."

At Luigi's defensive, fiery glare, Daisy tossed an arm around him, getting in their captives faces.

"Is that so? Then I guess you weren't taught a very important fact. That whenever Bowser believes he's reigning supreme? It's about ten seconds before Luigi or Mario reminds him what a freakin' loser he is."

"LOSER?! HOW DARE YOU!" The bespectacled koopa cried in fury, thrashing.

"How dare she, OAH how _DARE _she!" Waluigi mocked in a girlish voice, laughing at their anger. "Calmer down, Elton. C'mere, safety dance!" Waluigi chuckled at the hammer bros immense amount of armor. Then he grabbed them up off the ground, up to his face, which was considerably high, acknowledging _his _height.

"Looks like we're going to have to coax a little information from you, aren't we? And unlucky for you dweebs, I know this land _frightfully _well. It's where I get all my super sized bomb-ombs..." and with that, Waluigi began marching off with the captives. Reluctant but very curious as to what Waluigi might get up to with them to get them to talk, Luigi and Daisy followed suit. Some distance behind them, troops thundered the ground they walked on with the number of them, unaware of the threat to their bosses typically flawless-until-tested-by-a-Mario-brother-and- co plan.

In the meantime, still residing in the cool solace of the balcony, Peach was replaying the past week in her head. Had she ever spent that much quality time with Mario in her life, without it ending in some horrible kidnaping or plan of revenge? It had seemed so perfect. So flawless, outside the consistent misery that seemed to loom over Mario's conscious-heavy mind. Her favorite moment had been having lunch in Mario's back garden, laughing at how wild Luigi's piranha plants went whenever they tossed scraps and offerings of food from their plates to them. The sun had been euphorically blessed that evening, kissing every curl on his head, catching every warm and dazzling hue of aquamarine in Mario's smiling eyes... then there was a sound. A disturbing sound, and of course any sound was disturbing, when she had such beautiful memories to reflect upon. What was ruining her moment now?

Crashing.

It was like the split second sound went on and on and on, like an ominous echo in her mind.

Was that crashing from the bottom level of her palace?

Screaming.

There was most definitely screaming going on down there... dragging closer, she could hear it as if it was all happening within an eyes blink and a journey of days at the same time. And she froze. Her first thought was a panicked _'Where's Mario?'_

Was she the first or final victim in whatever lay beyond her bedroom door?

There was no time to think, act do. It was all a blur, a whirlwind, a tornado that was coming and going before you could inhale and exhale. There was banging and screaming and crashing outside her door, and she would have jumped. She would have leapt from her balcony, knowing all too well that all the harm coming to her servants was for _her _protection, for _her _sake- that once again, someone or something was coming to bring misery and harm to her. She was always the doomed partner of misfortune.

For once, she wanted to be ready for it. She wanted to drag whatever the hell she had to deal with _away_ from the innocent people of her kingdom. Take it out, lure it, and face it. But the person who burst through her door wasn't who she expected.

It was one of the very last on her mind at a time like this.

It was Toadette, trembling from head to toe, rushing to her side. Her face was panic-stricken, and her shaking hands grasped those of the Princesses. She had a sense of complete rushed urgency about her that the Princess really didn't like on such a charming friend like her.

"P-princess! Peach, it's-"

"Toadette! Please, try and calm yourself, what's-"

"No! Come _on_" Toadette urged, gaining a firm grip on Peach's forearms. "LISTEN we have to get out of here Peach, and _now_, he's-"

"Already here, thank you. And I appreciate the charming intro."

That horrible, revolting creature was leaning languidly in the doorway, claws before his face in a mocking casual demeanor. His eyes glinted malice as they fell upon the two girls on the balcony.  
What was he doing here?!  
What was he _always _doing here.  
Ruining everything.  
Toadette stood before Peach like a barbed fence, face locked in determination. She wasn't willing to budge.

"Jump, Princess."

This order stunned both Peach and Bowser. His snarl was one of pure hatred.

"You make one move and I'll tear your little buddy here limb from _limb!_"

"Toadette, don't be foolish. He's going to-"

"Peach! I said _jump_!" And with that, Toadette shoved the Princess harshly, not wishing to do her harm but desperate to protect her, forcing the umbrella into her hands as she went. "GO!!!"

Terrified and option-less, Peach plummeted down, the shock leaving her delayed in her time to open the umbrella. But she managed, and she drifted, and she squeezed her eyes shut so tightly against the horrible scream her good friend let out on the balcony. Snarling, and silence. Always that horrible, God awful silence after the scream. Of course.

Of course the time she got to see such a dear friend to her on a visit, it would be a time like this. Surely she couldn't have run into her at a super market, or a store, or a café. It had to be here, and now, and like this. Perhaps even their last. Peach swallowed down a sickening sob at the idea of this, and felt her feet connect with the ground. She heard a mighty, body-shattering, bone-grinding roar from her balcony, and heard no more from Toadette.

Always running, always terror, always peace shattered by some threat on the horizon. And now she was running, gasping for air as she plunged into the nearby woods close to her castle, gnarled branches like the claws of many sinful adversaries tearing at her pretty gown. Toadette had put herself on the line to get Peach to safety.

She'd be damned if she let an act like that shrivel in vain.

-----

..and again, I've made myself terribly sad. LOL  
But hopefully you guys had a good time reading this, don't forget to R&R!  
See you next time, everyone :)


	11. The Bait, The Plan, The Con

Hey everyone! More juicy tidbits all around, hope everyone enjoys this installment...

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**Understudied Understudies**

Luigi was actually feeling his stomach churn, as he watched a very lanky, taller evil version of himself dangling his victims over the side of a cheep cheep bridge. But it wasn't just any cheep cheep bridge...

"Oh-my-God-Oh-my-God-Oh-my-Gooodddd!" Squealed the bespectacled koopa, staring down at the large, ominous shadow in the water. "I told you not to get saucy with them!"

"We're going to die!" Wept the HammerBro, panicking as a large yellow Mohawk poked out of the water.

"All right everyone, lets shut up shall we?" Giggled Waluigi, rattling the rope to elicit more panic. "Where's Bowser."

"DON'T TALK TO HIM!" Squealed the Koopa, kicking around stubbornly. Waluigi sighed in annoyance, and let the rope slip them closer to the water.

"Oops!" He smirked, and they looked up at him in horror. A large, orange fin cut the water...

"I'M TELLING! I WANT TO LIVE!" The hammer bro roared, looking around wildly. "The mushroom kingdom! He's going to the-"

"IDIOT!" Barked the Koopa, trying his hardest to hurt the hammer bro and failing miserably. He resigned to biting the hammer bros shoulder, who howled in disapproval.

"Stupid _turtle!_ He's going to kill us, look at his crazy eyes!" Waluigi decided to ignore that.

"What does he want at the mushroom kingdom?!"

Both Luigi and Daisy looked dull at this, exchanging glances.

"Are you seriously asking him that, or are you just really enjoying tormenting them?" Luigi demanded, folding his arms sternly across his chest.

Waluigi blushed bashfully at this.

"Well..." and began tugging them back up. Without a warning, the enormous cheep cheep that had been circling the terrified captives all this time leapt out of the water, gargantuan mouth agape as it lunged for the bound pair. It didn't exactly wait around there that long, expecting nothing! All three were shocked by this random event, both Daisy and Luigi preparing themselves to lunge in after the poor, D Grade enemies.

Gasping, Waluigi quickly jerked them up, grabbing them with his long arms in mid air. The cheep cheeps leap just barely missed where he now clutched them in his arms. He then placed them on the ground, heart pounding. Luigi released a long sigh of relief, and Daisy deflated against him, chuckling at their luck. Waluigi briefly stared back into the water, certain he could hear the giant fish grumbling bad things at him. He'd been terrified that they'd be devoured! He wasn't about to show it, though.

"No useful hostage ends up in a belly now, does it." He grinned evilly, then sat next to them. "What other fun can I have with you whilst forcing info?" He pondered, and Luigi approached the scene, tugging the hostages over to him.

"My turn. Maybe they won't become somebodies lunch on my watch."

Then he looked down at Waluigi, eyebrow cocked.

"You're creepy."

"You're sexy." Waluigi taunted, and Luigi looked _very _embarrassed, not quite as entertained as the other three onlookers- who were pealing in laughter. Luigi dragged the hostages a safe distance from the smug Waluigi, sitting before them.

"Please... can you tell me what Bowser wants with my brother? It's important..."

"Tough! So is Bowsers duty!" This induced an eye-roll from the green clad man.

"I beg to differ. And either way, I'm going to find out. You might as well spill it while I'm being easy on you guys."

"Nuh-uh! No way! You're too nicey-nice to pull something and I know it. Good guys make bad kidnappers."

"No, but Waluigi isn't. And lets just put it this way- if _I_ don't get an answer, I'm certain I can leave it to him to-"

"You've touched my heart with your invigorating speech." The Koopa rushed hurriedly, taking a worried glance at Waluigi. "How do you know he wants something with your brother?"

"How else do you think we found you?" Daisy sighed, coming over to sit next to Luigi. "I listened to every single thing you guys talked about. And Mario was one of the hotter topics. Now why don't you just stop dancing around the subject and tell Luigi what you need to know? The sooner you talk, the sooner you leave."

"What's with this dame talking for you? Can't speak for yourself now? Who is she, your little sidekick?" The koopa snickered, eyes piercing Daisy's lovely face. At this, Luigi flamed very red, and Daisy adapted a very coy look.

"I'd like to think of myself as, yeah." She took a bashful look at Luigi before maintaining her hard ass grin. This only deepened the redness in Luigi's cheeks, and instinctively, his hand met the back of his neck.

"She's not a sidekick. She can take care of herself fine. And I'll leave her to take care of you two if you waste any more of my time yammering. Trust me, she _will _hurt you." The captives looked wearily with fear upon her, and both her and Luigi attempted to keep from bursting out laughing at this. This was starting to get way too fun for the three of them. "I'm going to ask you once more. What does Bowser want with my brother?"

"He wants to destroy him. See him die." The hammer bro declared, expression heated, twisted joy. "Slowly, painfully, and pathetically."

Luigi felt a rage boiling inside of him, and like a cool cloth, Daisy had discreetly looped an arm around him, rubbing his side softly to soothe the burn. He hated talk of his brother encountering harm. He didn't go on all those trips for nothing. He made sure Mario was safe, and he'd be damned if anyone ever tried to change that. But he could take these losers, like so many of their predecessors.

"Oh, really. And how does he plan to do that?"

"By finding the princess... finding out if all these rumors about Mario being vulnerable right now are true. Evidently they are... you've ditched him, haven't you?"

A slap to the face. Luigi pressed his lips together, and twisted it into a cruel grin. Not budging!

"Maybe I have. But I think Bowser's forgetting something. Mario... is freakin' Mario. He's kicked his ass without me before... he'll do it again. This is just another pathetic loser romp for you, everyone like you, and that overweight iguana..."

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA- IGUANA! It's so true-"

STOMP, STOMP, STOMP...

Waluigi's joy at Luigi's comment was short lived, and he quickly scrambled closer to the others, eyes slit in worry.

"They're coming..." He said ominously, peeking out from behind a tree cautiously. He weaseled his way into it, peering out from his perch. "Luigi, they're coming this way! What do we do?"

"Put your mug back into the tree, for starters, before they _see you-"_

"FINALLY! Our cavalry! GUYS!!! WE'RE OVER HEEEERE!!" The captives began to scream and thrash. Daisy and Luigi seized their mouths, glaring down at them wearyingly.

"Alright. For one, they're STOMPING, and MARCHING. Do you _really _have the lack of sense to put together _BIG _noise overpowers all _other_ noise?" Daisy scolded, and merely smirked as the Koopa bit into her hand. "You shouldn't have done that." She smiled.

"Ugh, you little piece of garbage!" Luigi ranted, reaching to grab the clamped turtle.

"No! Don't. He'll learn..." She chuckled, and the Koopa looked unnerved at this. She then seized his head, digging the nails of her trapped fingers into the roof of the Koopas mouth. She then used the same injured hand to muffle the scream of pain it let out. Luigi laughed out loud, and Waluigi nearly fell out of the tree with cackles.

"My God, when did we get so vicious, Daisy?" Luigi giggled, and the Hammer Bro was starting to lean away from them, trying to remain as unnoticeable as possible. He certainly didn't want to be next.

"Lets see, I _used _to be a princess, started hanging out with you...then Waluigi... now I'm reduced to cat-fighting with Koopa Troopas..."

"Yeah that'll happen!" Waluigi chuckled, then, looked down at them frantically. "Whoa-GUYS! Are you listening?! I _said _they're heading this way! Aren't we gonna do somthing?!" Waluigi snapped from the tree, then hopped out of it with urgency. Luigi frowned thoughtfully at this, staring up at the lengthy man.

"Um...Waluigi? We _are _in the woods- they can't see through trees... you realize that, right?"

"Of course I do, you green turd! They're coming this way MOWING it down! They've got chainsaws for crying out loud! Now stop getting rabies from these animals and lets hi-tail it!" Waluigi laughed, standing and taking off. All four exchanged worried glances, bothered by his excitement of the event.

"Jeez...is he always this bonkers?" The hammer bro frowned, watching after the frantic, lithe frame of the Wario brother.

"I'm scared..." the Koopa pouted.

"I really like him, Daisy. I do. But he's... he's pretty weird."

"Yeah, he's, uh...hmm. That's one disturbed childhood."

—

This was it. This was falling into play _exactly _the way he'd hoped it to. The plan wasn't what he would call elaborate- in fact, it was so insanely easy- so easy, in fact, he'd worried it would never work in a million years. But it was. Of all his foul plans he'd devised, this one was working out. He'd never wanted to catch the princess this time. If he wanted to, wouldn't he have had them go straight to her bedroom? He wanted the chaos. He wanted people to think it was just another try at kidnaping Peach. So much he wanted it believed, that he lied to all but one of his faithful workers, Kamek- who was assisting him as surely as he was sitting there by the side of the road, waiting.

He hadn't even been to Peach's castle. Why should he? Wouldn't it be so much more juicy to just sit here, and wait for them all to fall right into his grasp? He just had to make sure he could find his way to Mario. And he could promise that this would be the place that Peach was going.

Kamek was slick and silent, like a boiling liquid that melted its way through surfaces. He was gaining on her. He was mere inches away from her, could even smell her perfume, and she had not the slightest idea he was there, that _he'd _been the Bowser that tortured her people, that left Toadette in a crumpled heap on her balcony... he had loved the rush. The power of hurting and overbearingly controlling people by force. He enjoyed their fear and begs of mercy. He felt more cold blooded than ever. Bowser had never truly installed any hope in him, ever given him any truly mammoth missions. And this...this was the testimony to all he was capable of. He was making this poor, pathetic girl lead him straight to Mario. Finally, Bowser would know where to find the horrible plumbing rat! And then...

"Why hello, Kamek." Bowser stood from where he'd been seated, cloaked as he usually was when out in the open. Kamek had just appeared out of thin air before him. He was very used to that by now. Finally, he got to be a part of his own plan, after waiting in the dark on the side of the road where the drive to the castle met the main road into the area- the beloved land the Princess swore to look after and keep protected. If she only knew what she was doing...

"Hello, boss. I'm assuming you'd enjoy getting in on some of this action, no?"

"Why yes, I was getting mighty bored here. If you'd do the honors?"

"As always, my liege." Kamek bowed, then whipped out his wand. With a couple swings of the magic stick and a chant of incantations, both appeared to have never existed in the place. Completely undetectable, except for their need to move- and upon moving, cause sound- nobody would have known they were there.

"Well? Where is she?"

"Don't worry. She'll cross this road any moment. She's heading straight this way... I think she's getting very close to his dwelling..."

As if on cue, a very disgruntled, tear streaked Peach threw herself out of the woods onto the road way, looking both ways frantically, afraid of seeing a captor. She fled into the woods on the other side of the road, tatters of her dress dragging behind her.

"Bingo." Bowser chuckled lowly, and the two began to follow her into the forest. Tearing through trees, shrubs and weeds, Peach shredded all area between herself and Mario. She had to be near him right now. She carried with her a variety of stars that powered her castle- and she grabbed every mushroom, fire flower and star she could find on her way. Mario would need this. And she couldn't stay long. She just had to see him before her inevitable kidnap, make sure he was at the very least safe from their harm- she prayed she wouldn't arrive to a heap of ash and dying flame where his house used to be...

The idea sent her sobbing and racing, stumbling and falling through the woods- and when she fell, she crawled. Her beautiful white gloves were ripped, her arms coated in scratches, thorns in her hands from tearing the bushes apart to get there faster...

_Please God, don't let them have hurt him..._

At long last, she pushed herself through the last clusters of bramble bushes, and found herself staring at the beautiful, cozy cottage. Smoke billowed from the chimney, the only true sign of life from within the place. The light over the door was on at the very least, signifying that indeed he was home. She detested the large gap between this group of branches and his front door... eyes bouncing back and forth between her space and his, she scanned the area between... completely clear. So she kicked off into a heart-pounding, breath-stealing canter, legs charging her forth as fast as they could muster. She threw herself through his front gates and fell to the ground with a painful collision as her legs wrapped in the remains of her long dress. She dragged herself swiftly to her feet again and stumbled, wavering at the door... and felt a crushing, hurtful embrace envelope her body. Doom, failure, danger- It was as if she was suffocating, her chest heaving for air she couldn't grab, and something unseen- something powerful was squeezing her, seeming to demand every last breath from her body. A small set of useless gasps as she tried to gain the air she needed, useless. That hideous, horrible face suddenly appeared before her, out of nowhere, and her mind- with every last bit of energy it had left, was screaming _'No, no, no, NO...'_

"Bastard..." She croaked, teeth grit against the pain. _Toadette..._

"Why thank you, Princess, you're too kind. And to top it all off, you led me straight to Mario. Who knew you could be so generous after all the hell I've put you through these past few years..." He loosened the grip- presumably so he could taunt her before forcing her into unconsciousness, or worse... She tried to scream with rage, wanted to hurt him, _kill him, _she couldn't breathe...

He grinned smugly as she thrashed.

"Short of breath, Peach? You had quite the jog over here. You wouldn't know if you'd just seen pandemonium in a tractor heading your way!" She managed to free her arms, nails biting into his throat, grasp weak but filled with spite-engulfed rage.

"Aw, I love you too." Bowser sneered. "I knew you needed a pick-me-up." He smiled, squeezing her harder than before. "Feeling better?"

She opened her mouth to protest, to beg for him to stop, because she felt as if she was about to deteriorate in his arms from the sheer force...and then she thought of the only person left, the only thing keeping a ray of light in this black hell of a situation, with Bowser just outside a down and depleted Mario's door...

_Luigi, you've got to help us..._

"Speak up sweetie, I'm not prone to mind reading!"

And the air came and went as soon as he finished speaking, and her chaotic, desperation filled world was turning black...

_Mario!_

"Nighty night, Princess."

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More updates soon, please don't forget to R&R!  
See you next time :)


	12. Cat & Mouse, Airing of Grievances

One of my favorite chapters of this story ever. :) Specifically to write. Enjoy!

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**Understudied Understudies**

"I'm all in." Waluigi declared, tossing his cards down.

"You'll live to regret this! Once they find you, you'll live in pain, torture and-"

"Ugh. Best I've got is a pair of Jacks." Daisy grumbled, ignoring the cryptic prisoners while tossing down her cards. Both looked to Luigi, who looked very pleased.

"Two aces." He declared proudly, placing his cards down smugly.

"Oh, man! Nooo!" Waluigi squalled, and Daisy groaned.

"You win AGAIN!"

"Hey now, I've had to play my share of card games in my day. Me & Mario used to get pretty bored on the road sometimes!"

"Well, reap your winnings. Again" Waluigi smirked, shoving the pile of food and coins his way. Luigi nodded, looking pretty proud of himself as he collected. Then he divvied it into three piles, pushing two towards the losers.

"Hey!"

"Come on now Luigi, you won fair & square." Daisy laughed, starting to push her pile back at him.

"Ah ah ah! Keep it. You guys need stuff just as much as I do right now-"

"But you won it!"

"AH!" Luigi silenced a baffled Waluigi, then stood, scanning the area. The troops hadn't made it here yet.

"Goody two shoes." Waluigi grumbled, pushing some of the food into his mouth.

"Want some apples, Wally?" Daisy offered.

"Don't call me- sure!" He exclaimed, biting into one happily.

"Guys- I can see them. In the distance. We should probably pack up now, hm?"

Waluigi paused his chewing, looking up at Luigi.

"You know- why don't we stop running? We can take them, Luigi."

"It's too risky, guys..." Luigi warned, looking to Daisy. She cocked an eyebrow.

"This better not be about me. I'm a black belt." She grinned, grabbing an apple for herself. In a way, yes, it was about her, Luigi realized. He didn't know Waluigi's fighting abilities, and truth be told... he was doubting himself. Dammit. He felt so disappointed in himself. All this trouble to get out on his own, and he felt he couldn't pull it off. Sure, he'd dealt with many missions- many terrors, and troubles. But those were all motivated by his need to protect his brother, to keep him safe and out of harms way. It seemed everything he did lead back to Mario in some way, didn't it. God- He _did _need Mario. He needed him there. Now more than ever before throughout his whole journey, he yearned to see his brother. What mess had he left Mario in? How was he doing? Was Luigi doing the right thing? Could he manage battles of this size without Mario? Surely he couldn't... surely he really _was _a background character, just as everyone said- right? He was player two. Son two. He resisted the feeling, the stinging sensation behind his eyes signaling an oncoming onslaught of tears. He was the eternal understudy. He was so nervous... so scared of letting them down...

"Luigi?" Daisy said cautiously, and when he came out of it, both her and Waluigi were looking up at him, concerned. His expression read startled. He really didn't want to talk about this issue. He was embarrassed enough as it was. "What's wrong?" Daisy pouted, a finger gliding under his chin, in hopes of getting him to look at her. He met her eyes, and she read something there. Something that somehow, made her feel like she understood his disposition, without being able to pinpoint_ exactly _what was bothering him. But something intense was happening beneath his mellow exterior. And she knew better than to force it out of him. He would only tell her if he felt like it. Maybe this would be something she'd never see of Luigi. Either way, she felt the need to support him. She smiled sadly upon his tense face, and intimately stroked a finger down along his nose. She turned away from the now blushing man.

"Anyway, you heard what he said Wally-"

"I said DON'T call me-"

"Pack em up!" She declared, motioning at the very grumpy looking captives.

"Aw man!" the hammer bro snarled. "We're never getting away from these..." He trailed off at some very intimidating stares from the three. "...devious captors." He swallowed thickly. He was promptly dragged off by Waluigi, who enjoyed swinging them in the air for a moment before offering them some food.

"Psycho..." the Koopa muttered.

Luigi was thinking on things other than food, and Waluigi's mental declinations. He was very grateful for Daisy's rescue, but now...now did she expect what was on his mind? He turned his head to gaze upon her, perhaps read her, and discovered she was attempting the same thing. Both turned away, crimson cheeked, puzzled and wondering.

_Does she want to know? Is she going to ask me?_

_How can I talk to Luigi alone? Or would he talk to both Waluigi & myself?_

In the meantime, Waluigi also had something pressing on his mind.

_...If I try to fix this wedgie, is anyone going to notice?_

—

Bowser felt as if the air smelled sweeter. It was tastier and wholesome in his lungs for the first time. Finally, after so many years of humiliation and torture, he was going to get back at Mario. He was going to make him pay for all the horrible interruptions and embarrassments, from High School right up until now. This would be his glory day. He was stronger than ever- had prepared long and hard for this show down, this immense battle to take place. Kamek had now flown back to the castle with the Princess. So if Mario was reluctant to fight, he sure as hell wouldn't be upon hearing that. He stepped up to the door, clawed hand on the knob, and turned it slowly- savoring each moment like some plated delicacy. _This is it! _He giggled in his mind, _This is it!_

Hen pounced into the room with great force, slamming the door behind him, releasing a snarl that would chill the spine of anyone near. But Bowser felt a bit foolish. There was nobody in here. Not a peep, not an anything. Not even a family pet to react to his grand entrance. Where _was _that lousy Mario brother, anyway? Grumbling in dissatisfaction, he began to roam the house. Bypassing the kitchen he went straight to the room- the first one he found. And with his face exploding in a malicious grin, he found Mario's bedroom. _I'm this bad, _he thought, contemplating waking the man before pummeling him at an unfair disadvantage. How glorious would that be, waking up Mario to something like that? He pushed open the door, eyes adjusting to the dark. It was dark everywhere in this house. Claws extended, he crept to the bed, and promptly dug in. Nothing. His paws traveled over every inch of bed sheet, but the hero was nowhere to be found. Annoyed, he made his way to the living room, and pounced on the couch. _Nothing! _No! It had to work, it was such a flawless plan!

_Don't panic, Bowser. He'll be home..._

He wasn't about to give up. If Mario wasn't home, he'd _wait _for him to get here. _And, _being the evil bastard that he was, he'd clean out Mario's fridge in the meantime. He cackled deviously at this, heading for the fridge. Ripping it open, he found a very barren offering in the form of two measly plastic containers.

"Jeez, sad haul." Bowser grumbled, taking out a container of spaghetti. Turning to sit at the table, he gasped, sending the spaghetti crashing to the floor. In the light from the fridge, as it was closing, he saw a silhouette. A cap, a moustache, a hunched form... it was Mario. How long had he been sitting there? What was wrong with him? Bowser shuddered at how creepy this was. He'd been there the whole time, watching him, listening to him, soundlessly.

"Oh, uh- hi, Mario." Bowser stammered, actually nervous. Mere seconds ago had he seen Mario, he might've engaged him in battle. But the way Mario hadn't even looked at him yet, the fact that he seemed to be _ignoring _him, engrossed in a coffee mug, was scaring him.

"Mario?"

—

With Waluigi gone a short distance to an orchard patch, night cloaking his existence, Daisy felt a window of opportunity. Luigi was sitting alone, Indian style in a patch of flowers, staring at the ground like it was a good sitcom. She sighed listlessly, smiling inwardly. He could be so reserved when he wanted to be. Sometimes it seemed he was so used to being in the background, he'd attempt to climate towards staying in it. She took a seat next to him, and he acknowledged her presence with a charming but shy smile.

"Hey..."

"Hey greenie. How ya doin'?" She giggled, curling up to place her head on her chin, tilting it toward him.

"Alright...yourself?" He said wearily, suspicious. She was definitely up to something...

"Um... I'm worried." She frowned, staring down at her feet. He seemed inquisitive at this.

"Worried? About what?" She smiled at this, still staring downward.

"About you."

"Oh." Luigi blushed, staring at the ground again. Bingo. _Knew it..._ "You shouldn't be."

"I am. And I should."

"Because?"

"Because I know something's wrong, Luigi. What is it?"

"Um... I don't think now is a good time..."

"Luigi... you know you can tell me. You know you can _trust _me, right?" She soothed, and that's when Luigi had to ponder. _Did _he trust Daisy? Did he put faith in her again, even after all she did back then...

"I-I hope I can." He stammered, and her eyebrows shot up at that. He hadn't meant for it to come out sounding so rude. It sounded a mite bit better in his head. _Dammit..._

"What??" She blinked, inwardly hurt. Had she done nothing to earn his trust again over these past few weeks? He decided to quickly give her what she wanted, in hopes that it would counteract the effects of his last unintentionally stinging comment...

"Well... I'm just- I'm not... Daisy, I really don't feel, that I can do this." He revealed, deflating. That, if possible, hurt her even more, seeing him look so ashamed of himself, cap pulled low over his handsome face. She tilted it up, and he found a stern gaze emitting from her.

"What is it you feel that you can't do?"

"I'm...God. I am second best, Daisy. I am- I can't _do _things the way Mario can. I don't function like him- he's so incredibly full force, so powerful. And I'm just... I _am_ his understudy. I learned it all from him. And I learned it from being _behind _him, every step of the way. He always saved the girl. Where was I?"

"Exactly, Luigi. Where were you? Exactly where you were meant to be. And that's not second place by a far cry. You were there to pull through when Mario _himself _couldn't."

"I was the fall back."

"YOU are his backbone!" Daisy cried, glaring at him defensively. "You always have been! You always fill in the spaces that Mario can't! When he gets himself kidnaped you always save his ass! And why would you spend all your time trying to save Peach? She's not your girlfriend, is she?" At this Luigi shook his head no bashfully. "_No. _She's Mario's. Which is why he's so ruthless during those journeys. And that's the reason _you _need to be there for him. Because _he _needs _you." _She stressed, hands clasping his firmly."Look at him now! He's so helpless without you. Luigi... you are second to no one." Daisy assured, eyes fiery with her belief, a hand stroking along his face. She grinned encouragingly at him, and this time when he ducked back under his cap he was smiling madly, face aflame with rouge.

"Yeah, well..."

"Yeah, _well..._ give it up!" She teased, shoving him playfully. He laughed, and she tugged the hat off his unruly curls, soaking up the gleeful expression on his face. Relaxing onto his nearest shoulder, she closed her eyes blissfully. He stared up at the night sky, releasing a long, sheltered breath.

"It's really nice to see you again, Daisy."

"That's funny, coming from you." He felt her smile weakly against his shoulder. "I figured you'd never say something like that. I was sure we weren't ever going to speak to each other again."

"So did I. Truth be told, before all this, it's what I would have preferred, after everything that went down. Not anymore, mind you- it was just because of- um..." Luigi started rubbing the back of his neck, and Daisy became tense. She knew something heavy was coming. She lifted her head attentively.

"Daisy, can I ask you something? I mean in all seriousness..."

"Well that's silly to ask, you know you can." She stared at the buttons on his overalls, nervous.

"Uh- the letter..."

"Oh, no..."

"No, please- there was something you wrote, I- that is, it's never really left me. I'd really like to..."

"I'm sorry, I'm listening." Daisy's heart began pounding. She hated talking about this, and she was scared of what it might bring on between them...

"You wrote something... you told me- well, Bowser read it out- that... you felt that my brother..." Luigi licked his lips, throat beginning to feel tight. This was something that after all this time, never failed to cut deep. "You said that my brother was better than me. A-a billion times better than me..." the words crippled his composure, and he drooped with the dismal weight of them. "I was just sort of wondering..." he froze when he heard a soft sniffle beside him, and his backbone tensed again as he looked upon her. She was wiping at glittering paths finding their way down her face. The sadness the sight brought him was overwhelming. It created a horrible feeling in his chest, and he anxiously reached out to her, hands coaxing tears gently from the surface of her face, then stroking comfortingly through her hair.

"I... Daisy I'm _sorry_..." He frowned, unhappy to see her crying. He felt so guilty...

"No Luigi, _I'm _sorry. I lied to you and it wasn't _fair. _I-I _never_ felt that way about you! I never so much as got agitated at you before that night. I cared so much for you. I still care so much for you and I wish I'd just said nothing and let you have a nice night... I was just so _hurt_. When you like somebody so much and- and they say something like that about you it _hurts, _Luigi. I don't know why you said it. I was always so kind to you..." She sobbed, tears pouring freely now, as he sat in shocked silence beside her. He took her face in his hands softly, thumbing away the cascade with a befuddled aura in every crease on his face. Now he was deeply confused.

"Why I said_ it_? Said _what_, Daisy? I don't understand..."

"Bowser..." she choked. "He told me what you said about me that evening, at Peach's house..."

"At Peach's house? Daisy, I was never even _at _Peach's house that day!" He exclaimed, and her watery eyes clouded with turmoil.

"You weren't? Or you don't remember?"

"I wasn't. What did he tell you I said." Luigi said darkly, eyes fixated on her troubled features.

"Luigi, it's-"

"Daisy, _please_. What did he tell you I said?" She looked to the ground, struggling against another onslaught, scanning for anything but his strict expression.

"He told me..." she swallowed hard "that you and Peach... that you guys were _making out _in her room-"

"Oh, God..." Luigi said uncomfortably, fingers tugging at loose curls dangling before his eyes. "Man, she's like my _sister_..."

"He said- h-he said that when he asked you why you wouldn't go out with me- you said _why _on earth would you want to go out with _me, _and that you'd rather date a Lakitu brother!!" She sobbed as her words came out in a flurry before reducing herself to a heap of emotion, damp face embedded in Luigi's shoulder. His eyebrow flew up and his mouth dropped at this.

"What?! WHAT?! That dirty, disgusting, lying _scoundrel!!!" _He exploded, tugging back, hands grabbing Daisy's shoulders as her forced her to look him in the eye.

"Daisy- I've- I would _never _say something like that about you! Ever! I never did! _None _of that happened, I swear! I swear on Mario's _life! _He was lying, he was _always_ up to no good, _why _did you believe him?!"

"I'm sorry!" She exclaimed, eyes shut tight. "I feel like an idiot! She was just so gorgeous, and she'd gone over earlier that day to ask you something in private _right after _I got in a _fight _with her about how much I _liked _you so I thought she was getting back at me-" she gasped for air "and I _never _thought someone as good as you was going to fall for some _loser, background, _D grade princess like me anyway! Why would you have _wanted _to date me?! It didn't make sense to me-"

"Well it did to me!" Luigi barked. "I was in love with you, Daisy! And don't talk about yourself like that! You aren't any of those things!" He snarled defensively.

"I am!" She declared stubbornly. "I'm- I was stupid enough to believe _Bowser. _And look what I did. I made you feel like _crap! _I made you feel second best to Mario for years and for _what? _For _Bowser_ and his stupid tricks?! It's a good thing I _did _screw up my chances with you, Luigi! God knows what you'd be into by now! Stupid, damn _note._ I'm more trouble than it's worth bothering for!"

"Not quite." Luigi laughed, feeling outrageously uplifted by this confessional talk. A burden that had been with him for so many years of his life was relinquished. The humiliation of that Café event, the depression that followed... Finally, relief from the torture of wondering what the hell went on that night... "And I'm pretty sure of what I'd be into by now, had things gone my way. I'd be a lot better off now, I can assure you."

"Oh, _please._" Daisy shook her auburn head, rubbing at her tear filled eyes as she stood. "Don't be silly, Luigi. I hurt you so _bad. _I could_ never _forgive myself..." her voice wavered as she hugged herself, and the young man stood beside her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Probably because you have no idea what you've just done for me, do you." He sighed, and she sniffled, shaking her head no as she studied him. This made him smile shyly. "Then you should know that you've just given me another shot at the girl I'm in love with..." He blushed, and a new warmth filled her. Seemingly every pain and bruise that they'd endured had come undone and vanished. Something this phenomenal happening over a simple chat had her wondering what the hell had they waited so long to face each other for? It was like the part of her that had died back then was alive and thriving, and she was a better, happier, fulfilled person because of it.

So, she decided to celebrate.

"Then stop standing around and get over here!" She beamed, and with that yanked the surprised man in for a long overdue, passionate, euphoric kiss... something it seemed the unlucky pair had prayed for since the day they met.

"_Uhm..." _Waluigi blushed to himself, stopping in his tracks as he was just headed toward the clearing that the currently engaged couple were occupying blissfully.

_Wow... awkwarddddd... _Waluigi flushed, embarrassedly looking away as he decided to stop where he had been headed. Though slightly uncomfortable by having to walk into the moment as it had occurred, Waluigi was happy to see that the both of them had _finally _clued in already. Took them a _few _years longer than many had suspected, but here they were. And he decided he'd bring food back to the group when they _weren't _sharing oxygen. Which, he hoped, wouldn't take an extremely long while.

...any minute now.

—

_(Sniffle)_ Ah, does it ever feel good to write something happy for once!

Fuzzy feelings all around ;)

Anyway, you know what to do if you enjoyed, R&R folks!

See you next time, and thanks for reading.


	13. Shocking Encounters Ahoy

HOORAY! I'm so happy to be writing this story after a teenie weenie hiatus. Getting a job can be quite time consuming. --

Wow. I've got over 1,500 hits and over 30 reviews for my one story. :o Thanks for those who chose to be really supportive of my first Mario endeavor! I really appreciate it!

Now without further adieu... (I don't have once French bone in body.)

Hey... know what I realized? I never put a disclaimer on my story! So does that make me a bad ass? :) Wild banging on door, peeks out the window to find troops clad in Nintendo branded gear Ehem... so I better make this quick.

---

**Understudied Understudies**

Bowser, although very uncomfortable, decided to see if this could be an advantage. He flexed his claws, eyes malicious in their intent, and he moved across the room in a fluid movement, hovering over Mario like a plague. He could barely make the plumber out in the darkness, but maybe this was intimidating him. Mario let out a long, tiresome sigh. Bowser snarled at this.

"That's right. I'm in your own freaking house. Right here, with your mercy at my command..."

"Oh, shove it." He grumbled, taking a slurp of coffee. Agitated and confused, Bowser clenched his fists.

"But- no! I'm in your _house! _Don't you care about how I carefully calculated my way here?"

"Mmm..." Mario frowned, disinterested. "No." Slurp.

This. Was. Not. Good.

What if this was some monster that had taken over Mario? Why wasn't he reacting? Was he...mentally unstable? Back growing tense and beads of sweat developing on Bowser's scaly brow, he made a mad dash for the light switch. When the light came on, he adapted a look that seemed to counter-act the fact that he just ran for the light like a little frightened girl.

"You should..."Bowser grinned, menacing his way toward the dull looking Mario bro. He flicked out a long claw, pressing it to Mario's throat. "It could mean you fighting for your life."

"Oh, yeah, that." Mario smiled sadly. "Sorry, Bowser." This made the Koopa king reel in surprise. What the hell?!

"Sorry?! You're saying- what?! Sorry for what?!"

"Sorry for disappointing you. There won't be a show tonight."

Blinking blankly, Bowser tried to comprehend what was occurring here.

"A show... wait- you're telling me you're not scared?"

"Of what..." Mario sighed.

"Um- of DYING?! At the slow, torturous, hell-bound mercy of my scalpel sharp claws, and my rows upon rows of jagged fangs?!"

"Hmmm...no, not really, no..." Mario moaned, slouching with his face practically in the cup. He wasn't even _looking _at Bowser, who wiped a paw of frustration across his face.

"Ok. You don't care if you die."

"You don't catch on to things easily, do you." Mario said pointedly, sipping from his coffee cup as if talking to his therapist, or close friend. Did he not care that his worst enemy in the whole world was _in his kitchen, _prepared to _kill _him?!

"What? You little-What?! M-Mario!" Bowser exclaimed, appalled at this pathetic scene he was facing. He was almost offended at the reaction he was getting. And this was anything but what he expected, or wanted. _No. _This plan was WORKING...

"Well? If you're going to, do it."

"_What_?!?!!"

"What?! WHAT?! Are you deaf?! You need to turn up your hearing aid?!" Mario mocked, face still stone platonic as he sipped from his coffee cup. "Do it already. Jeez."

"But..." NO! No, no, no! Not _this. _So pathetic, so cowardly! It was supposed to be a juicy, fighting tooth and nail glorified victory for Bowser, not a Mario laying down and getting grilled fest...

"I said go ahead. You win. Woohoo, you got me... so... yeah. You going to finish me off now, or will I have to do it myself." Mario grumbled in a monotone, resting his face in one hand.

Bowser's eyes nearly popped out of his head. NO!! What the hell was going on here?! _Not what I expected, NOT WHAT I EXPECTED!_ _PLAN B! PLAN B!!!...there is no PLAN B! GAH!_

"Uhhhmmm..."

"Might as well, no good to anyone..." Finally, an expression on Mario's face. It was pure, unrestricted hurt, and his lip was unsteady. "Nobody to cook for, nobody to save from drowning... NOBODY TO GO TO WHEN MY NIGHT LITE BREAKS!!!" Mario screamed, and like a lightening menace, effortlessly, he threw his table across the room violently, his cereal exploding across the room like a fourth of July firecracker. He stared after it, quivering with rage. "You know it broke three weeks ago. Three weeks. That's 21 days... he's been gone for 30. Almost a month. A month, Bowser. You know what that means?" His voice was shrill and frightening. The reptilian villain was so confused, and scared. There was a tyrannized craze, an empty, careless 'I-don't-give-a-damn-what-happens' look in Mario's eyes. And Bowser knew- he could feel how unpredictable this situation was. Mario looked _crazy_, dangerous. And he hated what it did...

This was the only time he'd ever truly feared his life around Mario. He felt as if there was a new, cruel power in Mario's clenched fists. As if the odds were even. All this work, all this success, the princess, the castle... the big plan. It _was _flawed. Mario _was _vulnerable. But he seemed fearless, reckless. Things were different. Mario didn't seem to care if he died. He didn't care that if he died, everyone was at risk. He didn't value himself anymore. Why? How?

It was then that he came to realize that Mario had asked him a question. What could he say?!

Bowser didn't know what it meant, no. He was too scared to ask what it meant.

"It means he's not coming back, Bowser. Luigi is fine. Out there somewhere fine without me. You know, living, laughing, mowing the damn lawn, livin' it the hell up. And me? What's big brother doing, huh? Being a lame ass. Luigi's out there doin' it high time. And I'm a freaking run down MESS!!!" This outbreak left a very huge dent in his fridge door. "AND NOW I need a new fridge." Mario grit his teeth, spoon snapping like a twig in his powerful fist. "Great. This is just #!ing PERFECT!"

—

When Luigi awoke, he found he was the last to do so. Daisy was packing their bags frantically and the hostages were complaining about a lack of breakfast. Waluigi was on the edge of the forest, peering through the trees. As he saw Luigi rise out of the corner of his eye, he scooted over to the green clad man.

"Luigi!" exclaimed, standing before him. "Nice to see you shook out of that one. We have to go!" Luigi cocked a brow at the tall man.

"Oh? And what for?"

"The troops." He stated, smiling slightly. "Though they didn't seem that close at the time... we didn't want to wake you. You need rest..." And with that, Waluigi scooped up Luigi's baggage on top of his own.

"Waluigi-"

"Don't." Waluigi warned "You need to save your energy, Luigi. And you do lots. Besides, I'm a horrible fighter..." Waluigi flushed, smirking at the ground. Luigi smiled warmly, patting him on the shoulder.

"You're a good man, Waluigi."

"And he makes a mean breakfast too!" Daisy laughed, coming over with her share of bags. "We saved you some for later."

"We've got a cook on our hands, do we?" Luigi grinned over at Waluigi, who evidently wasn't used to the compliments.

"Yeah, well- someone's gotta stuff Wario's endless hole." Their long explosion of laughter soon had them dwindling off into nervous glances. Had any of the troops heard them?

"We'd better get out of here." Luigi advised, dragging the captives behind them as they set off.

"Heeeeeeellllllllllllllp, PLEAAAAASE!!!" Screamed the Koopa, miserable and hungry. The hammer bro flinched.

"I've kind of got a headache-"

"HEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL-"

"Have some BREAKFAST!!!" Daisy barked, shoving an apple in it's mouth. The group chuckled triumphantly at that, and even the hammer bro could find joy in it. Crossing a large, brightly colored bridge, everyone was on edge about being seen. Staying low, they all ignored the gagging sounds coming from the koopa and attempted to keep a low profile.

"What's that?" Waluigi whispered, eyebrow arched at a creature moving towards them.

"Oh, no." Luigi sighed, staring at it. "I really hate these guys."

"What are they?"

"Trouble. Though I've never seen them in these parts..."

"Pfft- _trouble?! _That thing is cute for God's sakes. Just give it a little tap to knock it out..." Waluigi made his way toward the cutesy caterpillar sporting the flower donned bowler cap, and Luigi's eyes widened.

"Waluigi NO, DON'T-"

BOP!

The caterpillars eyes transformed into angry slits, it's body became engulfed in red, and steam arose from its nostrils.

"Erm... that was creepy. What the-"

"What do we do, Luigi?!" Daisy gaped, as Waluigi backed away from it.

"We run. Like all hell!" He exclaimed, and the group took off, and the red beast pursued wildly, gaining the attention of others of its kind, who it turn, became quite pissed off and followed for no good reason.

"Don't they have a bingo game to go to or something?!" Waluigi howled, panting as they were chased into a nearby woods.

"They _never _have anything better than this to do, _trust _me!" Luigi winced, pulling himself into a tree. Daisy scrambled up next to him, and laughed as she had to help Waluigi up.

"Damn. If only Yoshi was here. He _loves _the taste of those things. Can't get enough of them."

"_Those? _You mean those scary, hideous little mites? Gross!" Waluigi barked, sneering down at them.

"You're no underwear model yourself!" One yelled, and Luigi and Daisy were reduced to hysterics. Waluigi rolled his eyes.

"Of course they'd get to speak English _just _to insult _me._"

"Um... can't caterpillars climb?" Daisy frowned, and both looked upon her angrily as the writer acknowledged this and had them promptly scale the tree.

"Frig! Don't you have a cliff to run off of? Take off!" Luigi snarled, firing a multitude of green fireballs their way. They shrieked, leaping from the tree and darting off to safety. Waluigi leered over at a smug looking Luigi, flabbergasted.

"So, why didn't you just _do that in the first place?!_" Luigi shrugged at him.

"Meh. We needed some exercise."

—

"Sir! I just checked her room- the Princess is missing!" Toad came racing into the main foyer of the castle, red in the face as he stumbled before Toadsworth. The old toad closed his eyes, eyebrows drawn down in anguish, heaving out a long sigh. He tugged at his moustache, instantly stressed.

"Fantastic. And Toadette?" He inquired, risking another look at the young toad. The expression on his face couldn't mean anything good had become of her.

"She... she's very badly hurt, sir. She won't wake up. She's got a strange glow about her, like she's had some form of devilry in magic cast upon her..."

"Even better." The old toad whispered, shaking his head back and forth as his mind twisted with all the hard decisions now placed on his shoulders. The princess was gone. Toadette was in an uncontrollable peril. He began pacing, wondering- then wanted to smack himself in the head for wasting time wondering. What else was he going to do? He had to contact Mario!

"Toad, go summon Mario at once. We're in desperate need of his assistance!"

At this, Toad seemed even more disheartened, and weary to deliver more terrible news to the already disturbed elder toad.

"Um... a few of us actually ran over there shortly after it all happened, I saw Bowser... he went into Mario's home. Saw him go in with my own two eyes. Now the yard is swarmed with koopa's and goomba's. Nobody can get through..."

"Oh, the peril!" Toadsworth cried, throwing his hands into the air. "What shall we do now? Who can we turn to in our time of desperate need, if not Mario?!"

"Um... Luigi?" The toad recommended, arching an eyebrow.

"Well if _Mario _is captured, Luigi is sure to be! The two rarely stray apart!"

"Well, lately they have. Luigi is on his own right now. Shall I send a messenger to find him?"

"Immediately. He's all we have left, Toad. Summon Yoshi. He may pass the message on to Luigi, wherever he is, and also assist him should he return to the Mushroom Kingdom." The old toad ordered briskly, then swished into the next room to view the progress. Toad shook his head, feeling horrible. As if things couldn't get any worse, the one person that could save the whole Mushroom Kingdom was in God knows where, doing God knows what...

—

"JENGA!" Luigi cried, and the three of them scattered, avoiding the golden blocks as they toppled into thousands of pieces. The group laughed heartily, and even the hammer bro had been allowed to play this game, to the rage of the koopa troopa still tied up, declaring they were 'alright' and 'a lot more fun than Bowser'.

"TRAITOR!"

"Oh, stuff it. Who's up for another game?" The hammer bro grinned, and Waluigi promptly flew forward.

"ME! Me first!"

_BOOM._

All five individuals jumped as the mighty sound was heard throughout the oversized land, causing Luigi to rise to his feet. Mere seconds later, they heard a mighty yell.

"THERE THEY ARE! GRAB 'EM!"

"Move!" Luigi screamed, grabbing the two by their wrists and running like hell. The hammer bro looked between the groups for a moment, then decidedly grabbed the koopa troopa and ran after the three retreating.

"Oh, you dumb IDIOT!" The koopa grumbled, looking back at the army longingly.

"Paratroopas! On my count..."

---

The outburst made Bowser draw in a sharp, frightened breath. Not in the entirety of the time the evil beast knew Mario had he heard him say such a rude word, or act such a terrifying way. Had he done this? Had his presence brought on such a scary Mario? He couldn't have. He'd spent so many years trying to make Mario utterly miserable. And now that he was, it scared him. He disliked it. It seemed as though he cared naught for anyone or anything. Nothing. And Mario's behavior was not... Mario. He was being so vile. Had he been drinking? Bowser shuddered as he watched him, unknowing what to expect next. He flinched as Mario moved. The small, plump plumber sank into a chair, eyes struggling with the burden of holding in so many tears. He tilted his hat low and hung his head, disappointed in himself and humiliated. Bowser had gone from triumphant, to confused, to scared, to awkward, to... well, whatever this was in a matter of seconds. He knew when he came in that something wasn't right. Something missing. Something empty. And that's what it was. That was IT! The little green guy. The one that jumped super high and never seemed too far behind his arch enemy. Mario had just mentioned him, actually. Luigi, that was his name. He was Mario's brother. Scratch that. He was Mario's SHADOW. High school saw them endlessly together, and the one time they hadn't been...well, chaos had ensued. Now didn't seem to be much different. Was this the source, the cause for the madness that Mario was now going through? He'd claimed that Luigi had been gone a month. That had to be it. Every outbreak revolved around the green guy. Where had he gone? He wasn't anywhere to be found, and now Mario was so easy to defeat, so unlike himself, so pathetic, so..._ugh..._

_Pitiful. _

Yes, as much as Bowser hated it, and the pain of it was so foreign that the last time Bowser had felt pity for another creature, it was when he had broken his fathers tail by stomping on it as a saucy baby. But now was different. Now, it was his embarrassment and shock at finding such a worthy foe, such a strong adversary, forfeiting his life willingly without resistance. This wasn't the way it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be the worlds biggest show down, Bowser should have lost at least one row of teeth by now, and been tossed out by his tail at least thrice. This wasn't even fit. He could never be such a cowardly creature- a sneaky, hurtful, cruel, diabolical bastard, but not a creature who believed in a cheap shot in such a perfect, uneven match, and accept the doom of his greatest enemy... not like this. Not with Mario handing himself out on a platter at his weakest moment.

Mario was _alone_. He was reduced. He was desperate, and harmless, it seemed. And _utterly _alone, without even himself here, truly.

Bowser knew what it was to be alone.

A sharp, stabbing breath. Here we go again...

_Yes. _He knew what it was like to miss someone who meant that much. It was a long time ago, but he still knew the feeling. He_ knew_...

Seeing such a strong opponent so crushed, so... reduced. Another strange pain, another odd desire, it was coming back- old memories of times when he remembered how to smile and cause someone to do it back- that empty feeling when they went away. The one person in the world who ever enjoyed his company, who ever looked up to him in all honesty, who wanted to see him and talk to him without being paid to.

They went away.

Forever robbing his ability to make anyone happy to see him... was that what it was? Was that what Luigi was to Mario? And in that case Mario was a lucky man, if Luigi was still alive...the greatest, most bitter pain... was_ never_ getting that person back.

And Bowser could see himself in Mario now- as hurt as he was back then to lose someone so special, so close. That dank, helpless sheath over his eyes. Mario didn't want to live in this world alone. And for the first time in his life, Bowser knew, for a brief moment, what it was to be Mario. He could see where he was heading... _no_. Maybe this time could be different. He didn't want to see another creature hit as low as he had... he didn't want the pain. Not the pain again, anything but the pain _again... _

He was moving and not thinking at all, no plans, just actions- this was a REALLY strange action because as if embracing that old, hurt version of himself in those terrible times- oh God, he was_ HUGGING_ Mario, he thought. He felt disgusted and freakishly self-gratified at the same time- those old, unbearably painful memories were dancing like crying ghosts in his mind, in this situation, and for the first time since the day his happiness died, he felt somehow connected to another living creature.

—

Oh ;( Now I feel bad for Bowser of all creatures! But I mean come on, _something _must have made him as mean as he is, hmmm? shifty sly eyes Anyway folkes, you all know what to do!

R&R if you enjoyed! See you next time!


	14. Yoshi's Concerns, Waluigi Disturbs All

Mwa ha ha ha! That's right, folkes! The Mushroom Kingdom needs Luigi! What would they do if they couldn't go running to Mario's house? That's right. Mr. Lean & Green is Mario's secret weapon. :p Sorry for taking so long folks, having a full time job can be pretty time consuming...(barf)

Again, moseying on...

—

**Understudied Understudies**

Yoshi was sitting on the beach, poking around a fruit salad with his fork. He was so lonely.

Mario hadn't visited in the past two weeks, and Yoshi was told he needed space. Yoshi missed him terribly. More than anyone, he missed his good friend Luigi. When he discovered he was leaving, he panicked inside. Although the others made him feel equal consistently, he couldn't help but feel he owed Luigi a lot, and also felt very attached to him. Luigi was the reason he was even safe right now. Swallowing thickly, his mind delved into that fact even deeper.

Maybe he mightn't even be alive right now without him.

If only there was a way to make sure he was ok... and that thought was rudely interrupted by a flailing toad, frantically making his way past other flabbergasted Yoshi's on the beach to get to him. Standing to his full height, Yoshi prepared for whatever eventuality this would entail.

"Yoshi- YOSHI! Oh, thank goodness I found you!" Toad gasped, leaning forward to place his hands on his knees, heaving for air.

"Catch your breath, Toad- what on earth is the matter?"

"Y-you have to come with me. Was supposed to send a messenger to you. Sent myself to explain it better. Castle. Bowser wrecked it. Went to Peac- I mean the princesses room, Toadette was there... Princess missing, toadette sick..."

"Mario needs my help?" Yoshi said dutifully, dusting off his tail.

"Yes, BIG time- he's also Bowser's prisoner!"

"Oh, God!" Yoshi gasped, devastated. In Mario's condition no wonder that had happened! Now Yoshi felt guilty, for not being there, for lying around on a beach while Mario was in trouble...

"What do you need me to do. Say the word." Yoshi said sternly, committed to helping his troubled friends.

"Find Luigi- and fast. The two of you are all we have to help us get out of this terrible mess. What a dark day this is..." Toad mourned, holding his head in his hands. "I mean why do we never see this coming? Why aren't we ever prepared? Why can't Mario and Luigi live at the castle?"

"Because A, Toadsworth still seems to enjoy looking down at them as plumbers. Two, they're quite happy living where they are. That said... you know...maybe it wouldn't hurt you guys to do some battle training every once in a while."

"Point taken. Lets roll!"

---

Luigi instantly shot a glare into the sky, surveying how quickly those paratroopas were coming in.

"Grab the target!" An order that freaked Luigi out big time- because who _was _the target?! Daisy? Waluigi? Himself?!

"Oh hell no you don't!" Luigi said in warning, and blasted green flames into the sky to emphasize that, watching four paratroopas out of the group coming sailing down, screaming and aflame.

"Hold off the army, guys! I'm going to keep these losers from getting at us!"

"Finally!" Daisy squealed happily, proceeding to high kick a howling koopa into a swarm of others. Waluigi just stood in place, smiling invitingly as a group surrounded him.

"Hmm... so many sexy creatures, so little action time. Who wants some of this first?" He winked, then shoved his head forward, producing a kissy face. For a moment, the group was too horrified to even react. They just stared at the nightmare before them. Needless to say, once they had registered that yes, this was in fact happening, it sent the uncomfortable herd of koopas screaming for cover at lightening speed. Waluigi mock pouted. "Why do all the boys play so hard to get." This produced very wide eyed stares from his own company.

"_Please _tell me you're _joking!_" Luigi yelled over his shoulder, and Waluigi just laughed.

"Because _anyone _would date a koopa troopa."

"I would! Er- depending on the sex of said individual we're talking about here..." The hammer bro looked awkwardly at Waluigi, who looked disgusted.

"No questions needed man. I'm straight. Just... able to use my charm as a very effective weapon! Though for whatever reason I always get this same reaction from the ladies..." Waluigi seemed baffled by this. Luigi and the hammer bro exchanged amused glances before continuing in battle, with the hammer bro joining Daisy in her combat, hammers and limbs flying and colliding with shells. The hostage Koopa lay screaming by a tree in absolute futility, gaining nothing but a sore throat. Wow. Nothing new.

"Doesn't work on the ladies eh? Consider it marked! WHOA!" Luigi dodged out of the way of a spiky red ball, and growled up at the Lakitu brother who produced it. "Oh man, not you! Ah, I hate you guys!"

"Whoa, whoa, WHOA! I'm just doing my job here, dude." The Lakitu sulked, then proceeded to bombard Luigi with spiky undesirables at the painful comment.

"Ack- ow, my- Daisy?! Daisy how are you-" Luigi ducked as five koopas went sailing over his head. Luigi looked back to find Daisy standing there blushing.

"Ehehe... sorry Luigi!"

"Come on, just a peck, cutie!"

"OH GOD! FALL BACK!_ FALL BACK_!!!" Screamed the helmet clad koopa that gave the orders, and the troops happily flocked away from Waluigi. The Lakitu brother was heard screaming across the valley, as it plummeted toward the ground in a sheath of green flame.

"You haven't heard the last of us!" The boss roared, the last to look back as the rest were sent running.

"I sure hope not." Waluigi called with a sly smile, which was enough to send the boss diving into a bush for a hasty retreat. The group let out a cry of triumph, which quickly reduced into hysterical laughter at the events.

"Man oh man, guys. We are having way too much fun kicking ass together!" Luigi grinned linking arms with the group as they began to head off on their travels again.

"Agreed, man." Waluigi laughed. "I haven't had this much fun since the time I convinced Wario that an evil spirit was trying to possess him in his sleep. He bought a lot of coffee that month."

"Remind me never to take your word for anything." Daisy gasped, chuckling at the story.

"Sufficient and wise advice." Waluigi grinned, stroking his moustache.

"HEYYY! WHAT ABOUT ME?!" The hostage Koopa rasped, and the Hammer bro quickly ran back to retrieve him. But by far, and be assured, this wasn't the only surprise the group was in for today...

—

Yoshi sniffed along the ground, finding himself nearer and nearer to a fresh scent of Luigi- and what was that. Perhaps some girl? Definitely a girl. And...hmmm. He cringed as he picked up another scent. Eugh, _Waluigi_! What was Waluigi doing with Luigi? Something bad? Whatever it was, it certainly couldn't be good if he was involved! Perhaps Luigi was in danger? Well, as if that wasn't obvious. Where there was Waluigi there was a lot of trouble. And bed wetting. (I made that part up. ...sort of. : ) Moving on, he decided that he'd better pick up the pace a little. For all he knew the girl could be just as bad as Waluigi. Racing toward the green pipe, Yoshi plummeted in with reckless abandon. He found himself looking upon a montage of huge pipes, huge blocks, huge...well... everything. _Big World_. Snap! This was one of Yoshi's favorite worlds in all the land! There was just one problem... there was one hell of a lot of hiding places. If this was where Luigi had ended up, and he was in fact in trouble, Yoshi might never find him, regardless of the keen abilities of his nose. He wasn't going to let that keep him from trying his best, though. The Mushroom Kingdom needed him desperately. He ran along the golden path, nose pressed to the ground, determined to find the one person who could make this whole situation right again...

---

"Anything wrong, Waluigi?" Luigi questioned, looking upon the scrawny man with casual interest. It instantly caused an alarmed look to grace the taller mans face, caught off guard by someone actually giving a damn about what he was thinking.

"Oh, um, nothing really. Just erm... thinking." he muttered, then glanced up and noticed Luigi was smirking.

"You're lying." He declared, and Waluigi flapped his jaws for a moment before sighing heavily. "Yeah, So I am. What about it?"

"All you villains are the same, aren't you? Don't like to talk about stuff because it chips off that big bad persona. All alike." Luigi smiled, lying back. This caused Waluigi's brows to draw downward.

"I am not! I just so happen to be quite an original villain." Waluigi boasted. "I made purple evil."

"You do have a point there..."

"And as a matter of fact, I don't mind chatting. I'm just... not keen on um, discussing said issues in the presence of a lady."

"Ohh, you're _shy_."

"I am _not shy!_" Waluigi growled, blushing. "I-I just don't think it's appropriate to-"

"OooOOOoohhh, Waluigi's embarrassed in front of girrrrrrlls-"

"Shut up! She's not even here right now anyway-"

"BINGO!" Luigi barked, looking triumphant. "She isn't. Which means you have absolutely no reason not to talk to me."

"She's only gone down to the lake for a bit. Who knows when she'll be back."

"Waluigi...she's a _girl._ She'll take her time. And a lot of it at that. Don't worry about it! Besides. We're all men here. Right guys?" He tossed a glance over his shoulder at the koopa troopa and the hammer bro, and found them snoring. "Nice. Fantastic watch guards. Scratch the last part." Luigi shook his head in hopelessness, taking seat next to them to keep watch. Waluigi joined him.

"Well, then, fine." He mumbled, long arms tucked together in a tight fold. "I'm just- well, you know how it is. I'm worried about Wario- you know? I mean- aren't you worried about Mario at all, and how he's doing? By himself that is?" He smiled nervously, not used to expressing worry. "I uh, I haven't heard from him since that day he told me to keep and eye on you two and I guess it kind of scares me. Never been on my own before, you know?" He confessed, and Luigi was forced to submit to a feeling that had been nagging at him since he left. He _missed_ his home. He missed Mario's wonderful meals, his enthusiasm for small things, which lead to his accidental but hilarious destruction of things whenever he got a little too enthusiastic...

Was he ok without Luigi? He frowned inwardly at that. This was a new thought. He probably had been a wreck for a while without Luigi, but he had probably long forgotten about the green plumber. He squeezed his eyes shut tight against the stupid thought. No, that's impossible! Mario had always needed Luigi, he had never been on his own before... well, until now.

Now, he _was _on his own. Was he free to spend all his time with Peach, and all the people who worshiped him now? Maybe Luigi had always just held him back. He was probably living it up, soaking in the glory. He was probably finally getting to meet all his fans, to engage in all those parties with all those townsfolk around the land that put him on a pedestal. Visit all his places of glory, his statues, his tributes...

Luigi swallowed thickly. Maybe he shouldn't ever go back again, and ruin things...

"Er...hello? Am I talking to myself here?" Luigi snapped out of it momentarily, and found himself in quite a bad mood.

"Uhm...no, no you're not, sorry Waluigi." A raised eyebrow from the purple clad man.

"Something's bothering you."

"It is. I really do miss Mario, Waluigi. I guess... I just worry that with me out of the way, he's kind of got a chance to shine outside of me. I mean he always did in games, but... never really in person. Maybe now he's the big hero he always plays in his games 24-7 without a baby brother kicking around." Luigi grumbled, eyes fixated on the lovely hues of green coating the ground. Waluigi felt a vice grip inside of him, a new born insecurity that had not yet been explored: maybe that was the case for him. Maybe Wario had in fact forgotten about him, and was now being the ruthless, hardcore villain he'd always wanted to be. Waluigi had always robbed that ability from him, hadn't he? Wario always had to run to his aid at school, revealing to everyone that even if he was a villain, he still had a soft spot. Maybe Wario had finally grown up enough to shed that part of him? He had to face it. Being Waluigi, he couldn't exactly be hard to miss...

"You're thinking about it too, now, aren't you?"

"Yeah..." Waluigi said distantly. "I guess I never really thought about it that way..."

"That their whole world wouldn't go into shambles just because we decided to go off?"

"Exactly that."

"Does that bother you?"

"Whatever is best for him, I guess. I mean... I'd just feel awful for holding him back."

"Pfft. I don't think anyone could hold Wario back. Mario on the other hand..."

"Oh, you'd be surprised."

And he was surprised. The pair of them were. Because at that horrendously well-timed moment, Daisy let out a long, loud scream of evident peril, which sent the two men dashing for the nearby river where she'd been tidying herself up.

"Why do I ever get the idea that anyone around me is safe?" Luigi sighed with the roll of his eyes. "Idiot..."

—

DUH NUH NUH NUH!

And now more chaos ensues, in typical UU fashion. :O

And I bet you're all wondering about how Mario reacted to that little step out of character from Bowser. ;P Can't wait to write on this some more! So happy to have time off to do that.  
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed and please don't forget to R&R!

Until next time, folkes...


	15. Desperate Times, Yoshi's Appetite

_Hey everyone again! Back with another chapter- wow, there were a nice few comments on that last chapter. :P So... My job is actually fantastic, LOL I always spell folkes-FOLKS wrong, among other things- Snidely Whiplash did that first (silly Waluigi), and yes, Bowser being nice IS weird, VERY weird- but if it wasn't, it'd be just like every other story now, wouldn't it? ;)_

_It's fun talking to everyone, thanks for the reviews! Now I'll let you get back to what you're actually here for!_

—

**Understudied Understudies**

Mario was in a state of both disbelief and shock. Of all the things he'd expected Bowser to do- mangle him, laugh at him, pulp him... well, getting a hug from him was the last he'd suspected he'd receive. What had gotten in to the huge, angry lizard boss? Was he finally insane?

"Um... a-are you alright?" Mario asked cautiously and awkwardly, not used to feeling concern for such a huge jerk. There must have been something seriously wrong with Bowser if he was being affectionate. Bowser was affectionate towards nothing and _nobody._ Mario wasn't sure about this. Maybe it was worse than he thought. It had to be. Maybe- crazy enough, but plausible for this situation- perhaps Bowser was about to die or something. Maybe this was his last shot at redeeming himself. Making up for all the bad things he did before he got a shot at heaven? That had to be it. Regardless, he got silence as the answer to his question, and Mario decided that Bowser was definitely dying or something close to it.

_Great. Now Bowser is going to croak in my kitchen...and to put the icing on THAT cake, everyone is going to blame me for it!_

"Are you ill, Bowser?" He tried again, and Bowser was now sitting in front of him, on his floor, not looking at him. A strange note of conversation was on the tip of his tongue. He had never, ever in his life engaged anyone in conversation- except maybe a select few- that didn't result in a threat or some form of demeaning. This was a definite first. But then again, nobody had ever cared to listen to him, period. So... Frig it. He went for it.

"Um... tell me about Luigi." Was the great beasts request, and it was a bizarre one in Mario's eyes, but talking about Luigi at this moment sounded like a relief to him. Finally, someone who wanted to hear about something other than himself, the great Mario, and all of his meaningless adventures. They all seemed meaningless to him now, in contrast to Luigi, having him around, and then the lack of Luigi around the house over the past month. Yeah, this was something _he_ wanted to talk about for once. He didn't care that it was Bowser he was pouring all of this out to. It seemed the both of them were on the brink of destruction anyway, and desperate times called for desperate actions.

"He's my best buddy, er, Bowser. I don't remember a day I didn't see him unless I was seriously in trouble. Mhmm... my baby brother. He's almost a foot taller than me now. I can still barely get my head around that. He got all the height and ate like a pig. I got all the weight and run the errands of a super athlete. Always been the luckiest guy I know. Crazy about green and my homemade lasagna. Keeps a piranha plant garden out back. I've been trying to care for them for him, but they can't stand me. They won't eat out of my hands and they're wilting. It depresses me."

"Why don't you force feed them?"

"A piranha plant?!"

"Um...yeah I guess it's different when you don't have scales protecting you."

"I'd assume! But this isn't anything short of what I expected to happen. Everything's fallen into chaos without him around. He's always been with me... you must be sort of used to him by now..."

"I've fought him a few times. Pretty tough kid." Bowser said casually, smirking. "Did you teach him?"

"Yeah!" Mario laughed and managed a genuine smile at that, reminiscing. "He always wanted to be a big hero like me. I had to save him when he was a baby. I mean he always figured he was below me somehow but I don't buy it. Just because he's so freakin' bright. He's a damn genius and he would've went everywhere had he finished school. No, he wanted to save the universe. I wanted what he could've had, he craved what I was doomed to be. So we were both tossed into being heroes overnight. Caught on a hell of a lot quicker than I did when I was learning to battle. That's him though..."

"Well don't you think you cling to a lot, even for a brother?" Bowser observed.

"No." Mario said curtly. "I have my reasons."

"I guess it's safe to assume you were inseparable, weren't you."

"That's the word for it, if there ever was one._ Inseparable. _The best team ever created. He's not just my team mate, I'll have you know. He's all I have. He really is my best friend in the whole world. He was the only person I had and still have who knows _me, _& has knownthe real me since day 1. I even played it up to Peach a bit- you have to, you know-"

"Girls." Bowser rolled his eyes.

"Girls." Mario confirmed. "Luigi was the only person who didn't expect me to be Super Mario all the ruddy time. Ever. I was allowed to be myself around him. Even if he got himself into trouble he didn't want to look to me for help because, you know... I guess he felt I had to be a hero enough, he just looked at me so simplistically. He always worried when I'd come to help him, as if I was just nobody out of the ordinary coming to help out. And that's something I loved. He didn't expect anything special from me. He worried about me instead of demanded of me. It was the best feeling in the world because he knew I was capable of all that power, and he didn't mind. I guess because he has the same power within himself, and I envy him because he's able to live his life so easy and realistically. My life is a whirlwind. And I guess I wanted a piece of his world, and he wanted in turn a piece of mine. Still...when I was a loser or did something stupid he was the only person who didn't think less of me for it. We just had an awesome time, all the time, staying up late eating pizza and laughing and living it up... I guess the gaming world just ate away at him over time..."

"And so he left?" Bowser looked up at this, and Mario's face began to draw down from happily reliving moments, back to the here and now.

"Yeah. He left."

"Why, if he knew he was all you had? What did it?"

"They... the stupid company, he's just a big joke to them. Well, they got it all wrong. Anyone who ever thought that... what a load of damn garbage...Anyway. They called him an eternal understudy. He was insecure as it _was_. No matter how much I told him- he never_ listened_ to me. Just like the stubborn baby brother he _always_ is, he didn't want to hear it from me. He really isn't. I mean... he's been gone a month. I'm still a freakin' wreck. I don't know how I've... they're wrong. He's always been here to pick up from where I fail. If anything he's always been my_ life_ support. Now... well, now he's- he's just gone."

"Just_ gone._"Bowser whispered to himself, taking in the story deeply, and Mario arched his eyebrow, realizing once again who he was talking to.

"Bowser, uhm, a quick question." Mario said, clearing his throat of the tightness that was gathering there.

"Shoot."

"Why do you care? Why are you talking to me? Why is any of this conversation important to you? Why is this even happening right now?"

"That's four questions." Bowser smirked, attempting to hide anything that wasn't casual. It was a little late for that he decided, allowing them to sink in. Mario's questions arose a new, blank darkness in Bowsers eyes. He was silent for a very long length of time, as if contemplating if this was something to expose. He had never talked about this to anyone. He had never once, since the day it happened, mentioned it since. Talking about it would make everything that happened real. It would make that person real again. And Bowser wasn't sure if he was ready to indulge in something other than an impressive background filled with mischief and villainy. Dare he risk this? Mario was one of his greatest foes- his biggest adversary in the history of his life. But..._but._ Something had snapped here tonight. Something had changed unexpectedly, unintentionally- some vulnerability had been caught off guard and shone upon, and as it turns out, the two of them were the ones sharing this very testy, bare moment. Dare he offer his side of it? And that's when he became indifferent. What the hell was really holding him back. He'd made this situation. He could at least try to offer some form of sanity or explanation to it.

"Mario, I'll paint this scenario for you." He began, voice low and gruff, but intending to go somewhere important. Mario could only nod, expecting nothing and everything out of this, due to Bowsers behavior tonight. This had to be one of the most eccentric scenarios he'd ever been in, but he appreciated it- he appreciated knowing that something other than hate and crime was tucked away in Bowser somewhere.

"Mario... you say you care for Luigi quite a lot, right?"

"Well, that's putting it lightly. Yeah." Mario declared, eyebrows drawn down as if in offense.

"I mean you care as in you'd give up...I don't know... Peach for him?" Bowser started lightly. Girlfriends were one thing...

"I have." This confused Bowser, but regardless, he was on a mission...

"You'd give up being a hero for him?" Another thing...

"I would."

"Your life?" Bowser raised his eyebrows, enthused. This was the valuable shot.

"And _more_- why?" Ah. Mario was no fool. He knew there was a motive.

"I just wanted to make certain."

"Make certain of what, what do you mean?"

"I wanted to be sure that you felt _exactly_ as I did."

"When what?" Mario knew Bowser was dancing around what he really wanted to ask- and his anxiousness didn't go unnoticed.

"I'm sorry, but it was very important to me that I asked. Be patient."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"It's fine, I know it's tiresome." Bowser confirmed, and Mario smiled apologetically, still phased by the idea of talking so intimately with such a strong foe.

"Please, continue." Mario encouraged, and at this, Bowser stared at him intensely.

"Mario, what if you awoke tomorrow. You awoke to a knocking on your door. And there was a very solemn visitor, who came regretting to inform you that Luigi had died." Bowser's eyes slid to Mario's face, which was now twisted with an uncomfortable, lamentable expression of pain.

"Why would you say something like that?" Mario rasped defensively.

"Oh, that's not the end of it. Imagine if they continued on to let you know that he'd suffered. Suffered immensely. That someone had seen- that someone could have helped him, but they decided he wasn't worth their time. They left him there to suffer, and eventually die there, alone, uncared for."

There was a pause as Bowsers voice was hitched, and Mario discreetly pulled down his cap, attempting to mask tears of torment. The thought was unbearable. This was starting to become too much...

"Then after all that... after having to listen to that in the greatest detail possible... you found that you had yourself to blame. That if it wasn't for you... if you had showed Luigi how to do something otherwise- had you not influenced him that day... he wouldn't be gone. He would still be alive and well. But no. Thanks to you, thanks to your carelessness, he's gone. Forever."

"STOP IT!" Mario demanded, fists clenched against the pain. "Bowser, why are you saying this to me." He whimpered, and Bowser- half delved into another world- vacantly saw droplets finding their way onto Mario's pants, turning traditional jean blue into midnight navy pools of sorrow. This was truly tormenting the hero. Bowser could see it. He could _feel _it. And that's how he knew. That's how he was certain his assumptions were correct. Mario _did _understand. He could feel and live what Bowser had in mind. And ironically, with this at least, he could trust Mario. Strangely but not so unexpectedly, he could trust no one else. Now was the best time since it had happened. He took in a deep, strong breath- one that held the weight of his world within his lungs, before dispelling the truth to the most unlikely candidate in the world.

"Because, Mario." He sighed. "Because I lived it."

—

"What's that dork gotten herself into now!" Waluigi barked, tripping over another bush.

"Hey-"

"Yeah yeah she's your girlfriend, calmer down Romeo!" Waluigi fired back before Luigi could comment, and upon the remark his face flamed red.

"What do you- how'd you-"

"Well I never went berry picking for hours if you catch my drift."

"Oh my God-" Luigi began, mortified.

"Egh, be embarrassed later, we've got things goin' on here!"

"But-"

"Whoa! Well, um. That green thing could stand to lose a few..." Waluigi sneered, grimacing at the creature watching them from the other side of the river. Luigi couldn't believe his eyes.

"Oh my- Yoshi?!?!?!" He cried, gaping. Impossible! So far from home? Maybe he'd had one too many mystery berry pancakes that morning...

"LUIGI!!!" It bellowed in conformation, running towards him. Waluigi tensed, blocking the dinosaurs path. Luigi pat his back, a bit amused at Waluigi attempting to protect him, laughing at Yoshi's disgusted glare.

"BACK OFF, walking stick! Let Luigi go or I'll-"

"Yoshi, Yoshi! Calm! Clam down, he's on our side!"

"You know this porker?!" Waluigi scoffed, glancing back at Luigi.

"OUR side? And who are you calling porker with a brother like Wario anyway?!"

"Oooh, you take that back you nasty little-"

"Guys, GUYS! Can we stop with the ego battle for a few seconds? If anyone has bothered to notice, Daisy is slightly AWOL."

"How can you be _slightly_ AWOL?" Waluigi snarled, & Yoshi looked intrigued.

"Daisy? Who's Daisy?"

"Um, red hair, blue eyes, about yay-high" Luigi signaled with his hand "A bit boisterous, _very, very, _pretty-"

"Oh. You mean the chick I just ate?" Yoshi frowned, and Waluigi hid a bemused smile as Luigi's chin nearly hit the grass.

"What- WHAT?! You ate-" he cut short, hearing muffled yells and screams from within Yoshi's belly. Yoshi could only smile quite mildly, nervous glance darting between Luigi & Waluigi.

"Alright, buddy. Spit her up." Luigi ordered, seemingly unimpressed.

"Erm... about that. I can't just, uhm, spit her out. I'd actually kind of have to throw her up."

"Oh, man!!" Luigi howled, slapping his forehead.

"Disgusting!!!" Waluigi screamed. "I mean why'd you go and eat somebody, anyway?!"

"Well I _AM A DINOSAUR_-"

"Grab his arms, Waluigi." Luigi sighed, and Yoshi appeared to be mortified as Waluigi bound his arms.

"Fine by me! I ain't gagging this thing. God knows what else he's eaten-"

"Hey what are you- let me go! What do you mean GAG? As in me?! Luigi? LUIGI!" Yoshi yelped, craning his head away from Luigi's outstretched hand. "Oh _no_, come on, man!"

"Yoshi, I don't like this anymore than you do. I'm sorry!" Luigi grimaced, and with that, closed his eyes tightly.

"I _BEG_ TO _DIFFE_-AAGGKKK!" Yoshi gurgled as Luigi unhappily but swiftly plunged his hand into the defiant dinosaurs mouth. Waluigi gagged, letting go of Yoshi and covering his own mouth.

"UGH, I'm going to HURL!"

"Well we don't need it from you, thanks-"

BLECH!!!

"Ewwwww..." Luigi and Waluigi said in unison, as a spit coated, gasping Daisy emerged from the winding vortex that was Yoshi's digestive system.

"Oh... my... God!" She breathed, repulsed and flicking spit everywhere. "You mean I'm not dead?"

"No... just unbearably unappealing at the moment. Here..." Waluigi insisted before gingerly grabbing the princess up to toss her in the river.

"Gee...thanks." She snapped sarcastically, head emerging from the clear water. Luigi turned to Yoshi, eyebrows held high, waiting for an explanation. Yoshi seemed incredulous.

"What! I thought she'd done something bad to you! She wouldn't tell me where you were!"

"Well how did I know if he was good or not?! Some Yoshi's are bad!"

"ONE Yoshi is bad! And I'm THE Yoshi, thank you very much! How on earth could you mistake ME for any other Yoshi?!"

"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT! Mistakes, they happen!" Luigi played referee to calm everyone down.

"As well as forced rationing." Waluigi grinned, receiving a glare from each party. "Ehem...I'm done."

"Yyyeah... Yoshi, what're you doing all the way out here anyway?"

"Because, I was sent to look for you."

"Sent? To look for me? By who?" At this, all three of them were staring at Yoshi, concerned.

"The Mushroom Kingdom. On a very urgent note."

Luigi's face paled considerably. The Mushroom Kingdom. Peach. Toadsworth. Mario? Why were they looking for him when they had Mario? Why? What could they ever... and then it truly hit him. Something was bad. Very bad. Extremely wrong.

So wrong that not even...

"Mario." Luigi sputtered, his heart beginning to race. His pulse was pounding in his ears. He was so vulnerable... That's why they were looking for him and not depending on his heroic brother. Something must've happened... "Yoshi... what's happened to Mario?!" His voice arose in urgency, fear coursing through his veins. _No, no, no, no..._

Yoshi let out a long, dreaded breath, hating to be the one to have to let all this bad news loose on them... but, so it had to be.

"Luigi, you just might want to sit down for this one."

—

_Ah, the pinnacle. Don't you just love these points in stories? _

_Hahahaha... now I'm wondering what it's like to be eaten by a yoshi._

_...I don't need medication._

_(But in case I did an R&R certainly wouldn't hurt my condition.)_

_Taw for now! _


End file.
